


Love Me Tender

by rosepinknails



Category: Naruto
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Art School, Blood and Violence, Broken Families, College Parties, Drama, Explicit Language, Falling In Love, Friendship, Humor, I will update the tags and add characters as the story progresses, Implied/Referenced Drug Use, Lots of cursing because it's Hidan haha, M/M, Misunderstandings, Mystery solving, No Narutoverse, Not Beta Read, Police Involvement, Rating May Change, Rehabilitation, Romance, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Smoking, Strangers to Friends to Lovers, This is the rewrite of my old fic 'I Can't Get Started', alcoholic parents, long fic, missing person case
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-26
Updated: 2020-07-18
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:27:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 41,823
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23860798
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rosepinknails/pseuds/rosepinknails
Summary: The description was short, the word “Missing” being the most prominent at the top. The bottom half of the paper was folded and cut into separate pieces, presenting the police's phone number with the request to immediately contact them if said person was seen. His left hand reached out automatically and he ripped one of the stripes off, unsure why. He carefully put it in the pocket of his jacket with his gaze fixed on the picture and the dry paper felt sticky against his sweaty fingers.Where are you?Re-write of my other fic I Can't Get Started.
Relationships: Hidan/Ino (past), Hidan/Sasori (Naruto), Konan/Yahiko (background)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 15





	1. Chapter 1

_May 2018_

“Excuse me young lady, could you point me to the rotisserie chickens, please?”

Hidan felt something crumble up and die in him. He sighed internally.

“Ma'am, this is an art supply store.”

The old woman fumbled with her thick glasses and flashed him a grateful smile.

“Oh, thank you so much dear!”, she cooed, “How nice of you to help out an old gal' like me. Here my love, take this.”

She gingerly opened her black leather purse and offered him a small, blue piece of paper. He hesitantly took it from her shaky, age-spot covered hands and furrowed his brows. It was a bus ticket dated from 1957.

“There you go...now where were those oranges again...?”

She shuffled away and her walking cane made a dull sound against the wooden floor. He watched her with slight disdain and rolled his eyes. Old people. He absently put the ticket in the back pocket of his jeans and continued counting the grubby coins in the till. Sometimes he'd throw a longing glance through the shop window to his car, then to the clock on the wall. His trusty Audi RS2 was patiently waiting for him in the parking lot and the clock told him he had only ten minutes until 8 pm. Ten minutes too much in his opinion. The last beams of sunlight had just disappeared behind the pine trees on the other side of the street. The yellow fluorescent lighting stood in stark contrast to the arising darkness from outside and a few cars passed the building every now and then. He heard the faint wailing of the radio coming from the break room and the quiet mechanical humming of the lightbulbs. A loud yawn involuntarily escaped his lips and he tiredly ran a hand across his face with tears prickling in his eyes; he couldn't wait to be done for today.

“Oh no, she's here _again_?”, Konan groaned as she walked up to the cash register with a heavy box in her hands. She put it on the ground with a low grunt and stretched her back, discomfort obvious on her face. There were a few cuts and scratches on her hands from working in the back all day, patched up with some makeshift band-aids. Her silver necklace with the white rose pendant was tangled up in her purple hair and a trail of dark roots was showing on top of her head. She tug a few flyaways behind her ears with a long exhale and put her hands on her hips.

“This is the third time this week. What does she want now?”

“Hell if I know.”, he shrugged, “She gave me a bus ticket and called me 'young lady'. I'm not even sure she knows where she is right now.”

Konan let out a snort. He felt her suspicious stare when he rubbed the water from his eyes and leaned against the register.

“You look tired, dude.”, she stated while fiddling with her necklace, “Are you sure you're up for the party later?”

“Are you kidding me? I'm fucking pumped for tonight.”

She raised an eyebrow when he failed to suppress another yawn.

“What? Don't look at me like that!”

“You're gonna have a lot of fun, I can tell.”

“Whatever. Me and Deidara are gonna get fucking plastered. I can always sleep later.”

“Alright, party animal. By the way, did you see how the back looked like when you came in? It took me three hours to re-arrange all that crap.”

“Yeah, it looked like hell in there. Was that fucking Tobi again?”

“Who else?! And look at that!”

She gestured down to her three-quarter jeans covered with blotches of dried green paint. Some were a little faded from wiping at them with wet tissues and the flaky residue still stuck to the blue material.

“I got acrylic paint all over myself today. He forgot to check the last order again that careless idiot and one of the bottles was open. I accidentally dropped it and boom! Paint everywhere.”

He shot her a mocking grin.

“That's typical Tobi for you.”

She huffed and shook her head, kicking against the box on the ground in frustration.

“Hey, help me with this. These paint brushes are way heavier than I thought.”

“Anything else? Maybe get your pants to the dry-cleaning?”

“How sweet of you to offer! That'd be swell. Now come on.”

“Alright, fine. But you owe me a round of beer pong later.”

“Deal.”

He helped her carry the box to the other side of the store and punched some buttons on the old-fashioned cash register afterwards, doing what he had to do to finally complete his shift. But when the clock hit 8 pm he noticed that the old lady was still inside the store, browsing the watercolor aisle without a single care in the world. Great. He'd been so busy wrapping everything up that he completely forgot about her. It was always such a hassle to get her out of the store, even more now that she'd started showing up frequently; one time his colleague almost locked her up inside. Nobody knew how she kept escaping the retirement home a few blocks away. Sometimes he wondered if the nurses over there actually gave a damn. Pinching the bridge of his nose he leaned the wet mop he'd just prepared against the counter.

“Excuse me Ma'am.”, he called out as he walked up to her, “The shop's closing. I'm gonna have to ask you to leave.”

The small woman glanced up at him and her thick, round glasses reflected the lighting from the ceiling. Her gray hair was combed into a once tight bun now coming loose and some of the strands hung freely in her face. She looked like a typical grandma in her brown jacket and the pink scarf thrown over her shoulders, only the white plastic wristband subtly revealed that she didn't belong there at all.

“Watercolors are a wonderful thing, aren't they?”, she calmly asked all of a sudden.

He paused with a bewildered look on his face. He had expected her to answer him with literal gibberish or drag him into another insufferable discussion about potatoes again but instead it looked like she was about to spit some harsh truths.

“Yeah...I guess.”, he lamely answered and scratched the back of his head, “I wouldn't know. Not much of a painter myself.”

“You should try it sometime, young man.”, she suggested and her brown eyes carried a strange, lively sparkle, “It's good for the heart.”

“I-...what?”

“Hidan! Konan!”

He jumped in surprise when his boss' voice came from upstairs. He heard loud footsteps coming from the wooden stairs and soon the man himself appeared in his typical Khaki shorts and orange tie-dye T-shirt, hastily jogging down with his flip-flops flapping beneath his naked feet.

“Are you guys done in here or what? I have a date in 30 minutes and-”, he stopped mid-sentence. “What the hell is she doing- No. You know what? I don't care. I don't have time for this today.”

His boss hastily stomped past them into the back, then made a u-turn for the break room when he apparently didn't find what he was looking for. His erratic movements made his long gray hair sway around in all different directions.

“Konan? Where are you?!”, he called.

“I'm over here!”, came the faint response from the other side of the store. “I'm on the phone!”

“Phone?! How many times do I have to-, I swear to god this place is turning into a damn circus. Hidan!”

He walked up to him and crossed his arms, throwing the old woman a forced smile. The overpowering smell of his cologne mixed with bad breath and sweat was rather...strong this time and Hidan had to pull himself together not to scrunch up his face in disgust.

“Yeah...?”, he asked while slowly taking a step backwards.

“Did you call the surveillance company like I asked you to?”

“Yeah I did but you're not gonna like it.”

“What? Why, what happened?”

“The guy on the phone told me they're understaffed so it'll take a while until they can send someone over to fix the cameras. Around two weeks at least.”

“Two weeks?!”, he exclaimed angrily, “Are they deranged? _Two weeks_?”

“Don't yell at me, it's not my fault.”

“Fantastic. These morons over there can't do anything right. Now I have to...”

His boss turned on his heel and walked back upstairs muttering to himself. He rolled his eyes and flipped him off when he was out of sight. What the hell was his deal recently?

“What a nice, handsome gentleman.”, the woman said next to him and smiled, “You two would be just perfect for each other, my dear. Keep an eye on him or otherwise some other gal's gonna snatch him up!”

“Ma'am, for the last time I'm not a girl!”, he snapped at her but was met with nothing but a small chuckle. It seemed like she had gone back to being her usual clueless self and immediately started to unroll a story about her (probably already dead?) husband. The story lacked any kind of context and made absolutely no sense what-so-ever but it did entertain him a little while they waited for the nurse Konan had called to come and pick her up like always.

“Thank god she's gone. I'm this close to filing a restraining order.”, their boss murmured angrily when all three of them stood outside later on. The shop was dark, the parking lot almost empty and the first tiny white specks shyly glistened in the sky. A large puddle on the ground showed the vague reflection of the shop sign now hollow and quiet, not blasting it's annoying name all over the place anymore in usually glaring, pink neon letters. Sometimes it still got mistaken for a sex shop, despite the name “Artz & Craftz” clearly indicating it sold anything but that.

“Anyway. Good job today you two. Hidan, keep track of those cameras. I need them fixed as soon as possible. This is the second time this week something got stolen.”

“Third.”, Konan corrected and blew the smoke from her cigarette into the air. It had gotten colder since the sun had set and she pulled her beige coat closer around her frame.

“Goddamn it. College kids have no moral compass these days.”

“You can't blame them. College in itself is already as expensive as it gets.”

“Well, that's not my-”

Suddenly a phone rang and the song “Cheri, Cheri Lady” loudly announced an incoming call. His boss picked up with a low sigh and absently waved goodbye as he made his way to his car.

“Yes, honey?...No...Yes I picked up the cauliflower for dinner tomorrow...Broccoli? I thought you said cauliflower!...I don't know...They look completely the same, how is that-....”

The tires of the red Convertible loudly screeched after the engine roared to life and left nothing but a cloud of dust behind it in the parking lot.

“Finally. What the fuck is up with Jiraiya these days?”, Hidan asked when they were alone.

“Three words. Trouble. In. Paradise.”, Konan explained and laughed when she saw his disgusted face.

“Gross, dude! Don't tell me about your dad's love life, I don't wanna hear it!”

“Oh, like your love life isn't gross at all. All those flings you had after Ino?”

“Shut up.”

She cheekily stretched out her tongue.

“Don't worry, you can drown that mental image in alcohol later. But are you sure about tonight, though? You look rough, dude. Maybe go home and sleep it off. That two hour drive must've taken a massive toll on you. And you know Zetsu's parties aren't going anywhere.”

Just when she said that he failed to suppress another yawn. He slightly shivered while taking a last drag from his cigarette and threw the butt on the ground. He shook his head.

“It's fine. Thanks for coming in earlier. You saved my ass this morning. I can't believe I slept through all three fucking alarms.”

“Don't worry about it. How's your mom now?”

“I don't know.”, he shrugged, “Haven't heard from her yet. She's probably not allowed to use her phone.”

“Oh yeah, right.”, Konan nodded, “Rehab rules. You're gonna be okay?”

He brushed her off with a move of his hand. She didn't look convinced when he told her everything was okay but accepted it either way. He got flipped off with a grin when he teased her for the three missed calls from Yahiko and watched her disappear behind the building on her bike. His socks got wet as he crossed the puddle in the parking lot and he cursed under his breath as he climbed inside his car. The radio came to life in the middle of a generic pop song when he turned on the engine and he lowered the volume when a high-pitched female voice painfully scratched at his eardrums. He skillfully maneuvered the dark-green vehicle on the road and headed home, joining the song with a crooked falsetto after all. Him enjoying pop music was for sure a secret he'd take to his grave.

*

“Yeah...No, I'm gonna be fine, really...Yeah...Yeah I'm home now...Okay. Bye...Love you too, mom.”

The slam of the door echoed through the corridor. He flicked the lights on and threw his phone and keys onto the messy counter, clumsily stepping out of his black sneakers and hanging his jacket on the cloth rack. He knew he was alone but still glanced into the living room out of habit. It was dark and the dusty TV was turned off. An empty bottle of wine stood beside the brown couch and there was an overflowing ashtray on the coffee table accompanied by a half-full pack of Marlboro; his mother must've forgotten to grab them on their way out yesterday evening. The window was tilted and a soft breeze played with the curtains but it still smelled a little bit like smoke. The coffee table was covered it ash flakes and stacks of papers. Bills and letters from the insurance company, mostly. He grabbed the cable phone lying on the armchair and put it back on it's charging station, making a mental note to clean the apartment in the coming days. Next he went to the kitchen and opened the fridge. His stomach loudly complained about needing food and he decided to go for some leftover pasta from a few days ago and shoved it in his mouth with a spoon without warming it up. Piles upon piles of dirty dishes were rotting in the sink. A plant standing in the corner, once fresh and green, now hung it's withered leaves in shame. He really needed to get his shit together and start cleaning soon or he might as well let the rats take over and live with them as their overgrown adopted child.

He emptied a can of orange juice with a few chugs on his way to to his room while scrolling through his phone. The group chat was already blowing up with the first pictures of the party and he sat on his unmade bed to look at them, putting the empty can on the wooden floor.

First of all he saw Zetsu with a couple of mutual friends, always the fashionable host in his branded clothes. The next picture showed Kisame widely grinning into the camera wearing a pair of pink sunglasses with the words “Horny Slut” on them. Followed by that were some snaps of random chicks and dudes from high school he barely remembered. He was just about to continue scrolling when he suddenly recognized one specific girl with blonde hair and blue eyes. He stopped and double-checked. No, he wasn't mistaken. It was Ino. She was sweetly smiling into the camera next to a group of people he didn't know and his expression turned sour. Just the person he wanted to see tonight. Zetsu always invited anyone he could to his parties but he'd never expected him to invite _her_. Not after...everything that happened anyway.

He quietly groaned and rolled his eyes. Hopefully they wouldn't run into each other. The place was supposed to be pretty big this time, a modern vacation home in the woods close to the sea, luckily not too far from work; but it wasn't exactly the best place to meet your ex-girlfriend. They hadn't seen each other since their break-up a couple of months ago and he'd technically planned on keeping it that way.

He closed the app and took a quick shower, washing the rest of his exhaustion away. When he got out the last thing reminding him of his long shift were his slightly hurting feet and scratches on his hands burning from the soap. He dug through his overflowing closet and decided to go with a pair of navy-blue ripped jeans and a simple gray T-shirt. Throw his favorite black leather jacket over that and he was done.

After the last finishing touches to his hair and outfit he shot a text to the group chat, telling them he was on his way and got some excited, half-drunken responses. He grinned. It was a Friday night and he was going to have fun, no matter what.

He already had one foot out the door when he spotted a bottle of whiskey in the kitchen from the corner of his eye. It was standing in the open cupboard next to the stove, almost completely hidden from his sight behind a pack of paper towels. The glass was dusty and looked like it had been standing there for a while but he still felt his stomach drop; suddenly he regretted eating the pasta. He bit his lip and wiped at the black label. There was another bottle he found hidden under the sink and a third one in the living room drawer. He stuffed everything in his backpack and decided to take it with him. The alcohol would be much better off there than standing around at home reminding him of things he didn't want to be reminded about. An unpleasant feeling sat with him when he threw the backpack on the passenger seat and started the car. He swallowed hard. Anger was bubbling up in his chest. He switched the radio station and sang along to “Relax” by MIKA on his way to the party.

*

The gravel loudly crackled under his tires when he pulled up to the private parking lot. It was incredibly crowded and people were standing around everywhere and he almost hit a dude cruising around on a skateboard. He had already heard the shrill, rhythmic techno music from a few miles away when he drove along the bumpy dirt road with only one functioning headlight. He felt like his heart was beating in tune with the bass when he got out of the car and slammed the door shut with an excited grin. Groups of people were drunkenly grooving to the music. He smelled cigarette smoke, weed and the burned smell of torches decorating the way to the front door. Laughter and chunks of conversation echoed around him and a girl was vomiting into a bush with her friend beside her filming it. The forest itself around them was dark except for the colorful lighting coming from inside through the large windows. Tall trees stood strong and silent around the modern two-story vacation cabin and the lighting danced on their leaves. The torches gave everything a warm, almost welcoming glow but it made him wonder how nobody had been stupid enough yet to accidentally set something on fire. The blue, wide sea behind the cabin appeared almost black in the night, with a full moon reflecting on the water. He gave a couple of nods and waves to some people who recognized him and jogged up the wooden stairs crammed with party guests. Two bouncers dressed in black gave him a skeptical look through their sunglasses.

“Last name?”, the one holding the guest list barked against the blasting music.

“Sato.”

The bouncer studied his list.

“Hidan?”

“Yeah, duh.”

“Alright, go in.”

The door was opened and party noise greeted him like a fist to the face. It was incredibly hot. The room downstairs was filled to the brim with people dancing, shouting and grinding against each other. The floor was sticky from all the spilled alcohol and shards of glass and plastic straws were scattered everywhere. The smell of nicotine, sweat and sickeningly sweet cocktails lingered in the slightly humid air and he practically couldn't hear his own thoughts anymore. He fought his way through the moving crowd trying to find Deidara or at least a bar (preferably both) when a hand briefly grabbed him by the shoulder.

“Heeey, dude!”, Zetsu yelled in his ear with a wide smile on his face. The white of his mismatched eyes was slightly pink and he had a girl on each side of his arm who were both trying to drag him outside. He was in his college jacket now and his T-shirt was stained with alcohol, probably vodka judging from the strong smell.

“You made it, man! Fucking sweet.”

“What's up, Zetsu?”, he greeted loudly with a grin. One of the girls gave him a cute smile and he winked at her, earning an even cuter giggle.

“Oh, not much. Just throwing another party, getting wasted, having fun. You know, the usual.”

Zetsu laughed when the other girl whispered something in his ear.

“Alright, alright. Look, I'd really love to chat but these two got somewhere to be. Hey, why don't you grab a drink? Bar's over there. And by the way, Deidara's upstairs somewhere I think if you're looking for him.”

“Will do. Thanks man.”

He watched the three of them disappear into the crowd, heading for the back door. Their silhouettes bathed in rotatory hues of red, blue and green, the interval matching the beat of the song. He followed the direction Zetsu had pointed him at and finally reached the bar, ordering a strong whiskey cola right away. Heaven knew he needed it now. He left the booze from his backpack to the guy in charge and got flashed a grateful smile which he brushed off with a wave of his hand. Afterwards he went upstairs, red plastic cup in his hand, looking around for Deidara. He passed a couple making out in a dark corner of the hallway and heard his best friend before he actually saw him, his loud voice unmistakable among the laughter from the group he was sitting with. They were playing cards and Deidara had apparently lost because he was snorting a thin line of white powder with a rolled-up bank note from the messy table.

“Ah shit, my brain!”, he screamed and threw his head back, pressing his palm against his forehead. The rest of the group cheered.

“It's dissolving in my nose, oh my god!”

His blond hair stuck to the sweat on his face and neck and his washed-out band T-shirt was full of white powder stains. He was pressing both firsts into the sockets of his eyes and loudly groaned when Hidan arrived at the table.

“Yo!”, Kisame exclaimed and stood up to give him a half-hug, “Hidan! You're here! Nice to see you, dude. Come on, take a seat.”

“Hey, man!”

He patted Kisame on the back, threw his backpack on the ground and plopped down onto the sticky couch next to him. He didn't recognize the rest of the group at first in the dim corner, they were eight people in total. He briefly noticed Sasori who was definitely not there by free will and two former students from his parallel class. Some of them greeted him absently, the rest was too busy focusing on dealing out cards for a new round.

“You in?”, Kisame asked and sipped at his cup. His blue hair dye appeared purple due to the lack of reasonable lighting as he flashed him a grin, showing off his weird pointy teeth. He was wearing a T-shirt with the name of his college on it and his right upper arm was wrapped in a thick bandage, hiding what's underneath. Hidan already knew it was probably another shark tattoo.

“Fuck yeah I am. What are we playing?”, he asked.

“Uno. Shikamaru, he's in too!”

A stack of cards automatically slid across the table. He grabbed them and took an eager sip from his drink, trying to keep a neutral face when the whiskey burned in his throat. A girl with pink hair was scratching the rest of the powder together with her credit card and he quirked an eyebrow at her.

“Can't let it all go to waste, huh?”, he asked her with a grin as she made sure to collect even the smallest bit of it.

“Defo.”, she replied with a laugh and sarcastically added: “Stuff's expensive.”

She gave him a bashful smile and tug a few strands of hair behind her ear.

“I'm Sakura. What's your name?”, she loudly asked leaning over to him. She smelled like alcohol and sweet perfume and her décolleté glistened from sweat and some sort of pink body glitter.

“Hidan.”, he answered just as loud.

“Nice to meet you!”

“Likewise. Hey wait a minute, didn't we go to the same school together?”

“We did? Oh yeah, I remember you! Weren't you in the class next to-”

“Finally!”, Deidara suddenly interrupted and barged between them with tears still prickling in his eyes, “I thought you'd never show up, slowpoke.”

“Shut the fuck up Deidara we're having a conversation here.”, he said and tried to push him away.

“Are you for real? You've been here for like five minutes and you're already chatting up another chick? Sakura don't talk to him he's an asshole.”

“Really? Like how?”

“He's a huge player.”, Deidara said to her, emphasizing the “huge” part while wiping at his smudged eyeliner, “Save yourself some nerves and don't waste your time with him.”

“Get outta here you piece of shit!”

“Wow. So you're like a real tough guy, huh?”, Sakura asked. She leaned her head on her palm with a smile and her piercing briefly showed under her lip.

“Don't listen to him. He's just jealous because he's not as easy on the eyes.”

“You're so full of it, Hidan.”

Sakura laughed and shakily got up from the couch with an empty cocktail glass in her hand.

“I'm skipping next round, I'll go get another drink. Do you guys need anything?”, she asked into the group.

“Yeah, can you get me and Sasori another beer?”, Kisame asked.

“Sure. Anything else?”

She fought her way through a row of legs and quickly disappeared downstairs soon afterwards.

“Dude, what the fuck?”, he hissed when she was out of earshot.

“Stop whining. You need to take a break. By the way, what took you so long?”

“I have to work unlike some people. And I wasn't-”

“Are you guys done? Can we start now?”, that Shikamaru dude asked exasperatedly and gestured at the table. Multiple drinks, cards and traces of white powder and wet stains decorated the surface.

“The loser has to do a line.”, Kisame explained while looking at his cards, “You still know how to play Uno tho, right?”

“No, I don't.”, he responded sarcastically, “And what the hell is that anyway? We're doing cocaine now?”

“Are you stupid? Of course not. This is candy powder, obviously.”, Deidara said with an eyeroll and picked up his cards.

“Alright, alright. Bring it on then!”

The fist few rounds were pretty easy but it gradually became more difficult to focus after he finished his drink. He was squinting at his deck in the dim light and the loud music made a normal conversation practically impossible. The whiskey was slowly starting to mess with his system but he welcomed the feeling of a slight buzz creeping up. The sweetness of the coke sat uncomfortably present on his tongue and he shrugged off his jacket when it started to get hot. He took his punishment like a man when he lost in a tight round against Shikamaru and snorted the line Sakura made for him, pinching his nose with a long grunt. It burned like hell.

“No! What the shit, is this for real?!”, Deidara complained when he lost the next round and slammed his cards on the desk so roughly the glasses clattered.

“I can't do another one!”, he whined, “Sasori, do you have a tissue or something? I gotta blow my nose first. It feels like that crap's literally inside my brain right now.”

“Last time I checked I'm not your mother.”, Sasori replied dryly.

“Eat up!”, Sakura giggled as she crushed the small crystals with her card and pushed the white substance over to him.

“No, oh god, please don't.”

Hidan shot him a malicious grin. Served that bastard right for throwing him under the bus earlier. He fished out his phone and threw the camera on to film his friend's inescapable suffering.

“Do it!”, a guy shouted and the rest followed shut.

“Do it! Do it! Do it!”

Kisame violently massaged Deidara's shoulders like he was about to enter a boxing match.

“C'mon dude!”, Hidan exclaimed, “Don't be such a fuckin-”

Suddenly Sasori ripped the piece of paper from Deidara's hand, bent over and snorted the candy powder up in one take like it was nothing. He lightly scratched at his nose, looked him dead in the eye and said:

“...Pussy.”

The group erupted into laughter. Kisame pitifully patted Deidara's back snickering into his fist and someone even started clapping.

“He got you good, dude!”, a guy yelled.

“Har har, very funny.”, Deidara deadpanned and crossed his arms.

“Don't be such a sore loser.”

“Shut up, Hidan. And Sasori, you're the worst.”

Sasori just shrugged and nipped at his beer.

“I guess.”

“Hey guys, I need a smoke break!”, a girl chirped and got up, pulling at her tight black skirt.

“Yeah, me too.”, Shikamaru and some others agreed and walked after her. Soon almost the entire group dissolved pretty quickly and only a few people were left on the couch. Hidan threw his drink back, still grinning from malicious joy and jogged up to Deidara who was on his way downstairs. He noticed Kisame talking to some random dude from his college, Sakura who threw him another smile when he passed her and for a brief moment he imagined seeing Ino but luckily it wasn't her, it was just another girl who looked similiar. He released a breath he didn't knew he was holding and finally caught up to his friend.

“Why'd you drag _him_ along?”, he asked when they stood in line at the bar.

“Who? Sasori?”, Deidara asked and shrugged, struggling to overtone the loud music and chatter. At least it wasn't as crowded as before.

“Why not? I just felt like I needed to take his mind off things for a night.”, he gestured around him, “Best idea I could've come up with in my opinion.”

“Sure because this place is like, hot shit for someone like him.”

“You have a better idea?”

“Nope but I don't really care to be honest.”

“Then don't question my tactics.”

“What tactics?“

Deidara sighed and rolled his eyes.

“I'm trying to cheer him up. I know you hate him and everything but he's both my friend _and_ roommate so I gotta look out for his ass. At least somehow. For his sake and mine. Because his bad mood is starting to drag me down.”

“I don't hate him.”, he rolled his eyes, “Well, actually, yeah I do. But only because he hates me. For whatever fucking reason.”

“Really? You're impossible, dude. Give it a rest already. Bury the hatchet and talk to him like an actual adult. He doesn't hate you, you'll see.”

“ _I_ need to bury the hatchet?”, he parroted in an offended tone, “Dude. I'm not the one with the problem here.”

“Oh boo-hoo, you big baby.”

The line slowly moved forward.

“Just sayin'. I wasn't the one who ignored him for the last couple of years since we met in high school-”

“Oh my god okay, I get it, be quiet already you bitter old man. Stop getting your panties in a twist. And by the way, what's with the tired face? You have some major eye bags. Not cute.”

“Shut up. Work's been a pain in the ass today, that's all.”

“I can ask Sakura for some concealer if you want.”, Deidara offered with a smug grin and laughed when he received a mean glare in response. They got a vodka lemon and another (strong) whiskey cola when it was their turn to order. Deidara being the social butterfly that he was quickly got distracted by a conversation with some dudes Hidan never met before so he left him alone and made a beeline for the front door, feeling the urge for a cigarette. The bouncers didn't pay him any attention this time as he shoved past a group of girls taking pictures. The sudden change of temperature sent a shiver down his spine despite the impact of the alcohol. He felt goosebumps on his arms from the cold as he walked down the stairs, shoving a smoke in his mouth, and looked around for someone he knew so he wouldn't have to be on his own like a loser. But unfortunately no-one he saw seemed familiar and he'd never liked the guys from Deidara's university. So he leaned against the wooden balustrade and sipped on his drink, slightly bobbing his head to the music. It had changed from Techno to R&B, thankfully. Small red dots from other people's smokes could be seen across the parking lot and two girls were making out on the hood of a car. Three guys were eagerly cheering them on.

He finished his cigarette and was about to go inside when he noticed a familiar figure scurry among the partygoers. He furrowed his brows when he saw Sasori hurrying around the front yard with a searching glance on the ground. At first he thought maybe he was looking for his keys or something but then he figured; just a few inches away from him laid a phone. It was well hidden in the grass under a bush and he wondered how it even got there in the first place. He casually strolled towards it and picked the device up before some drunk dude could accidentally step on it. He grinned. Yeah, that was his phone alright. He recognized it right away with it's dark-red case. The notification light was wildly blinking and the phone screen lit up, informing about three missed calls and several messages. All from an unknown number. Strange. He searched for Sasori in the crowd and found him talking to a girl with a nasal sounding voice. She was already pretty hammered and swayed slightly with a red plastic cup in her hand.

“What, you lost your phone? O.M.G, that's like, so offensive. I dropped mine in the toilet once...”, she said. Sasori rolled his eyes and huffed, walking away.

Hidan didn't consider himself a bully. At least not anymore. Buut...a little fun wouldn't hurt, right? He mustered the phone in his hand and thought about what he should do with it. Maybe dangle it above his head? That guy was short so...nah. Too easy. And the risk of getting kicked in the nuts wasn't worth it. Throw it in the toilet? Tempting but...overdone. That didn't tickle much excitement out of him. Run over it with his car? He frowned. Too brutal. And way too much work. He disliked him, but not _that_ much. He shoved the foreign phone in his back pocket and grinned again. He'd find a way to mess with him sooner or later, he was sure of it.

But instead he completely forgot about it throughout the time. Konan and Yahiko showed up later just a little after 12 o'clock and he got so wound up in beer pong, a round of spin the bottle and darts that he didn't even hear it ring every now and then. The music was too loud anyway and Sakura kept distracting him with her cute smiles and her tight, blue hot-pants. It was almost 4 am and he was drunk, surprisingly not as drunk as he thought he'd be, when a guy stumbled through the back door and yelled:

“Hey guys, check this out!”

The crowd had diminished a little bit by now. Most people were sitting on the couches, some already dead asleep and more and more cars were slowly leaving the parking lot. Even the music had been toned down to something more appropriate.

“What's up?”, Deidara called after him but the guy quickly disappeared into the back yard again.

“Wanna check it out?”, Kisame asked, sounding incredibly sober for someone who'd downed more drinks than possibly anyone else there.

“They're just doing another stupid stunt in the pool, it's whatever.”, Deidara said and re-directed his attention back to the TV.

“Hell yeah, I love those!”, Kisame exclaimed and ran outside, accidentally shoving some dude in the process.

“Hidan, c'mon!”

“Fuck, alright...”, he groaned and got up as well. He hated to leave the conversation he was having with Sakura but she flashed him a grin and shook her head, signaling it was fine. He went outside and the chilly air immediately gave him goosebumps again. He could see his own breath in pale white clouds escaping his mouth and the world around him was slightly spinning. He shivered and crossed his arms, walking up to the group of people gathered around a girl on a plastic chair. Where did he put his jacket again...?

“Yo, look at that chick!”, a guy laughed and grabbed her arm to lift it up. It lifelessly fell back into her lap. She sat there a little hunched over, her eyes were closed and a small trail of drool was coming out of her mouth. Somebody had put a purple party hat on her head and it fell to the ground when someone tried to move her again.

“Holy fuck, she's out man. She's out cold!”, another guy said.

“Wow. What happened to her?”, Kisame asked and tapped her shoulder.

“I don't know. She's been acting weird all of a sudden. She just had a few sips of her drink and...”, her friend responded with concern written over her face. “I don't know.”

“Hey what's- oh my gosh!”

Sakura suddenly appeared from inside and covered her mouth with her hand in shock.

“What happened to her? That doesn't look good.”

“Relax!”, the second dude said, “She's just had one too many. Let her sleep it off in one of the guest rooms and she'll be fine.”

“I'm not so sure about that.”, Sakura said with a frown, “Did she throw up-”

“'Sleep it off?' How 'bout I take care of that!”, the first dude said with a sleazy grin and already put his arm around her waist to lift her up.

“How 'bout you back the hell off, dipshit.”, Hidan said and shoved him away before he could get into action.

“What the fuck man?!”, the guy angrily pushed him back, “Piss off, jerk. Who the fuck do you think you are? Knight in shining armor?”

“Hey, calm down you two!”, Kisame said and put himself between them.

“She needs to go to a hospital.”, Sasori suddenly said and Hidan turned his head around in surprise. Where did he come from all of a sudden?

“He's right.”, Sakura agreed with a nod, “We need to call an ambulance.”

They were both kneeling next to the girl now and exchanged serious looks.

“What? No way.”, dude number two denied, “You guys are crazy. We don't-”

Suddenly the girl jerked awake and loudly vomited into the party hat, only to pass out again the very next second.

“...Alright. Maybe we do.”

The paramedics arrived after fifteen minutes. The bouncers caught up on what was going on when more and more people started to go outside, lured in by the noise and chaotic chatter.

“Out of the way!”, one of them yelled when the girl was taken away on a stretcher, “Move it, people! Get out!”

“Make way for the ambulance! Get your asses out of here!”

The trees got covered in blue and red light and the ear-splitting sound of the siren cut through the silence of the forest as the ambulance quickly drove away. The entire mood had taken a serious nosedive after that, even the music was turned off at some point. Somebody poured that girl's drink in a potted palm tree. People started to gather up, looking for someone to give them a ride home or simply collapsed on the couches or the floor; only a few were smart enough to go upstairs to find one of the guest rooms. Deidara had already fallen asleep watching TV and Kisame got a ride from his college peers. He waved Hidan goodbye as he got into the backseat of the car with a couple of others and quickly faded from his view. Zetsu was nowhere to bee seen. Konan and Yahiko were long gone, too, they'd already left around 3 in the morning. They really missed out on all the fun, he sarcastically thought to himself. He was standing outside with his elbows leaning on the wooden railing, staring at the parking lot. It was nearly empty. The torches had been put out and a faint, burnt smell lingered in the cold air. An owl screamed somewhere in the distance. Even the cabin itself was dark and quiet now. The party was officially over, the bouncers, the DJ and the bartender had left. The only source of brightness was a small lamp next to the front door bathing them in a flimsy, orange light. A moth repeatedly hit against it with wildly fluttering wings.

“Do you guys believe it's true?”, Sakura murmured quietly. She was standing next to him with her back to the railing.

“The rumor about someone putting something in her drink.”

“I wouldn't be surprised.”, Sasori answered absently, leaning his head on his hand.

“That's...scary. Hidan, what do you think?”

She pulled the jacket he had given her closer around her frame and shivered.

“Who knows.”, he replied and scratched the back of his head, “I know some of Zetsu's friends are assholes but...I don't think anyone would go _that_ far.”

Sakura made a humming sound in agreement. The three of them were silent for a while. Then headlights shone through the branches of the trees and a car appeared coming from the dirt road, crossing the parking lot.

“My ride is here.”, she announced and returned the jacket. He shook his head.

“It's cold. Keep it.”

“But what about you?”

“I'll be fine. Tough guy and all.”

She gave him a grateful but tired-sounding laugh and put it back on, closing the zipper.

“Okay. Thanks. But give me your number at least so I can return it.”

They exchanged phone numbers and he waved her goodbye when she walked down the stairs, her shoes making a dull sound against the wood. The gravel beneath the car's tires crackled again and soon it was swallowed by the forest. He followed the fading light with his eyes and ran a hand across his face. Suddenly he felt his exhaustion weighing down on him again. This time the booze sure as hell didn't hit the spots it was supposed to, whether it was from that incident with the girl or from him mixing his all drinks. He felt sick to his stomach and still slightly drunk, but not the good kind.

Sasori was silent next to him. Sakura had been standing between them the whole time and now with her gone there was an uncomfortable silence sitting in the middle space. He watched him blowing a trail of smoke in the air with a low huff from the corner of his eye. The ashes lit up in red and the color briefly danced on his pale face. Hidan decided to spoil his lungs one last time as well before hitting the hay but when he opened his pack there were none left. He rolled his eyes and groaned.

“Fuck you, past me.”, me muttered under his breath and threw the carton on the grass.

“You want one?”, Sasori suddenly asked.

He snapped his head at him in surprise.

“Seriously...?”, he asked while giving him a questioning look. Sasori scoffed in response.

“Do you want one or not?”

“Alright, alright, yeah...That'd be pretty awesome actually.”

He took the cigarette he was handed and brought his lighter to the tip. It sizzled when the flame touched it and he took a deep, satisfied drag. In the same second he suddenly remembered something.

“Hey, let's trade.”

“Trade? For what?”

He fished out Sasori's phone from his back pocket and showed it to him. For a moment he feared he'd broken it by accidentally sitting on it or something but it was still intact. Bewilderment flashed across Sasori's face.

“Where did you-”

The phone was snatched from his hand in the speed of light and disappeared in the pouch of his black, oversized hoodie. A sigh of relief quietly left his mouth.

“Where did you get that?”

“I found it under a bush next to the house.”, he answered and nodded downwards, “over there.”

Sasori shook his head.

“That's the only place I didn't look. I've been searching all night for this thing.”

“Yeah, I figured. I saw you running around the parking lot like a crazy person earlier. How did you even lose it in the first place?”

“Some drunk jerk bumped into me. Must've dropped out of my pocket then.”

Silence fell between them again. Hidan blamed it on the alcohol still cursing in his veins for pushing him to keep talking.

“You know what? Actually I wanted to take a piss out of you with this.”

Now it was Sasori's turn to look surprised. His brown eyes mustered him thoroughly as he put out his smoke in the ashtray.

“What?”

“Yeah. I thought about throwing your phone in the toilet or something.”, he flashed a lopsided grin, “You're really lucky I didn't get to do it.”

“You wanted to fuck me over and that was the thing you came up with?”

“Well I'm sorry I was busy having fun at this _party_ we were both invited to. And I wouldn't call it 'fucking you over'. I just wanted to have a little fun, s'all.”

“Doesn't sound like fun to me, really.”

“I don't think you're in the position to judge what's fun and what sucks ass.”

“I'm just disappointed by your lack of creativity.”

“I know, shame on me. Wanna give the pone back and let me try again?”

That comment earned him a snort and a small smile appeared on Sasori's lips, revealing a row of white teeth complimenting the pink of his lips. Hidan hid his surprise when he noticed how they'd closed the distance between them a little more.

“I think I'm good, thanks.”

“Your loss.”

“I'll greatly take it.”

“What a bummer. And here I thought you'd finally want to break the ice.”

“Break the ice?”

“Yeah, because-”, he took a last drag from his cigarette and jammed the butt in the ashtray, “Because you like, hate me or some shit.”

He bit his tongue and internally rolled his eyes at himself, cursing the side effect of alcohol for shutting down his brain-to-mouth filter. That didn't just sound pathetic at all. Sasori furrowed his brows.

“I-”

“Hey, can you guys shut the fuck up down there?!”, someone suddenly yelled from upstairs with slightly slurred speech. Both their heads snapped up and they saw the head of a girl looking down at them from the open window.

“Some people are trying to _sleep_ in here!”

She slammed the window back shut and the sound echoed through the night.

“What a bitch. She's right, tho.”, Hidan murmured and suppressed a loud yawn. He stretched his arms and neck and blinked the water away collecting in his eyes.

“I'm going to bed. If I fucking find one.”

Sasori just nodded at that and stayed put, his glance never leaving the forest. He pondered if he should ask him if he was going to, too, but decided against it. Upstairs he luckily found one of the spare bedrooms unlocked and not in use. He stumbled over a few bottles and sleeping people but no-one even stirred when the noise cut through the silence. He crashed on the soft sheets and briefly remembered that he hadn't seen Ino anywhere before drifting off into a dreamless sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a re-write of my fic I Can't Get Started. Don't worry, you don't have to have read the old version to understand this one. I'm treating this like a completely new story and everything and everyone will get a proper introduction. This is a slow burn so be prepared. The main plot is a little different, I feel like it's more coherent and smoother now. I hope you guys enjoy it and thank you so much for your nice comments, kudos and most of all your patience. <3 I will try to update every second Sunday/Monday. All mistakes are my own since I don't have a beta reader.  
> Lots of Love, xoxo  
> rose


	2. Chapter 2

_Wednesday, May 23 th 2018, two weeks later_

“...So can you help us out? _Pleeease_!”

“No way. I'm 2 hours away from home and tired as fuck. Can't you call a cab or something?”

“Do you know how expensive that'd be?! It's in a completely different town. We're college students, we're both broke!”

“Sounds like a you-problem to me.”

“Oh come on, don't be such a turd.”

Hidan groaned and ran a hand across his face.

“Alright, fine. I'll drive you to the exhibition. But we're not listening to your stupid Britney Spears CDs on our way there.”

Deidara loudly cheered on the other line.

“Yes! Did you hear that, Sasori? I told you I'd come up with something!”

“You're a leech.”, Sasori said in the background.

“Wow. Go to hell, man.”

“Are you two done? I'm hanging up now.”, Hidan grunted.

“Yeah. Thanks, you're a lifesaver. The exhibition starts at 3. Don't be late!”

And Deidara hung up just like that. Hidan begrudgingly shoved his phone in his pocket and rolled his eyes. He regretted his decision already. He slammed the car door shut and headed for the entrance of the rehabilitation center. He didn't spot his mother anywhere when he strutted through the automatic doors so he sat down on a chair in the waiting area and grabbed an old, tattered magazine just to have something to do with his hands. The air was stale and small particles of dust were dancing in the rays of the morning sun peering through the windows. A flat-screen TV hanging on the yellow wall showed the news but the volume was too low so the indistinguishable voice of the host mixed with the chatter of patients passing by and the ringing of the receptionist's telephone. The woman, all dressed up in business attire, gave him a short suspicious look from her desk covered with fake plants but gave it up in order to pick up the call. He wondered if she recognized him.

“Hidan!”

His head snapped up from hearing his mother's voice. He threw the magazine back on the glass table as he stood up and turned around. She was coming down the stairs with a bright smile and another patient in tow, a small sturdy looking woman compared to her lean and tall frame. They exchanged a few words before going their separate ways and she quickly walked up to him with open arms.

“Hey mom.”, he greeted and let himself get pulled into a tight hug.

“Hey honey.”, she murmured softly, “Thanks for coming.”

Her voice sounded muffled through the material of his jacket. She carried the familiar smell of her perfume and he couldn't help but smile when he felt a few strong pats on his back.

“No problem.”, he said after she released him from her grip. She seemed a little chocked up and her green eyes were slightly swimming.

“Let's go?”, she asked with a fond smile.

“Yeah.”, he nodded, “Let's go. I'm fucking starving.”

“Language, young man.”

“Sorry. I'm fucking overcome with tremendous hunger.”

“...I will never understand where you got that smart mouth of yours.”

*

The first thing he noticed was that there were way too many people on their bikes. That, and the café was pretty crowded for 8:30 am. They were sitting outside at one of the small, brown tables surrounded by a large amount of old married couples and men in suits. The sun shone on both their faces and the trees' shadows danced on their figures. The soft breeze made the young, green leafs rustle and he groaned at the wind blowing his hair back in his face when he attempted to tame it. A few cars drove by every now and then and chunks of conversation echoed across the patio. His mother nipped at her white coffee cup and asked:

“So, is everything alright at home?”

He shrugged as he shoveled syrup-covered pancakes in his mouth.

“Yeah, I guess.”, he managed to bring out between chewing and wiped some of the syrup off his chin.

“I talked to our landlord the other day.”, she said, “I haven't cleared up everything with the insurance company yet but I'll take care of it so you don't have to worry about rent.”

He absently nodded, licking his sticky fingers.

“But you know, honey...”, she began and let out a deep sigh, “We still have some bills to pay...and I'm not sure if our savings will be enough to cover everything while I'm still out of work and-”

“You need me to pick up an extra shift or something? I'll do it.”

She slowly put her cup down and it made a clinking noise as it met the ceramic plate. She sighed again.

“...Are you sure?”

“Yeah. It's whatever. I'll talk to Jiraiya tomorrow.”

A relieved smile formed on her face and she reached over and gently squeezed his hand.

“Thank you. What would I do without you?”

“It's fine mom.”, he brushed her off and pulled his hand away. She leaned back with a huffed laugh and shook her head, watching him finish his plate. Her light-blonde hair swayed in the wind and appeared almost white in the sunlight. She brushed a few strands behind her ear, pulled her cardigan closer around her frame and took a long, deep breath. He already knew what she was about to say before she even started.

“Look, Hidan. I'm...sorry for all of this. I never meant to drag you into this mess again. I know how difficult it can be for you sometimes. Having a mother that...well.”

The pancakes kind of lost their taste after that. He slowly kept chewing anyway and avoided her sad, pitiful glance. Something in him wanted to tell her how much he agreed with her and ask her how long she'd had the booze stash he found but instead he silently forced the rest of his food down with a hard swallow.

“It's okay.”, he simply answered. “But do you know how long you're staying?”

“I'm not sure yet. The doctor said I should expect at least 10 to 12 weeks.”

“So 3 months basically.”

“Yes, probably.”

“Cool.”

His mother sat straight up and smiled encouragingly.

“You could stay with Deidara and his uncle again. Remember, like last time?”

“What? No way in hell! I'm not a kid anymore and Deidara lives on campus now. Didn't you know?”

“He does? Oh yeah, right.”, she laughed, “Sometimes I forget you two aren't in high school anymore. Time flies...”

“Well keep up, mom.”, he said with a mocking grin and wiped his fingers on a napkin, “Next thing you know I'll get fucking married or something and you're still gonna ask me if I did my homework.”

“Speaking of marriage: How's that Ino girl doing?”

Hidan shoved his empty plate away and furrowed his brows.

“What does that have to do with anything?”

His mother put her head in her palm.

“She was such a sweet one. And smart, too. What a shame, I liked her the most from all those tools you brought home.”

“Mom come on, don't bring her into this.”, he grunted with an eyeroll, “We broke up literal months ago. I have no clue what she's up to and I don't really care either.”

He hid the fact that he saw Ino the morning after the party and bailed out as soon as possible so he wouldn't have to deal with her...and the conflicting feelings that came with that.

“You kids know nothing about love nowadays.”

“Whatever.”

They paid for their orders and took a stroll around the neighborhood afterwards. He still remembered a few places from the first time she was hospitalized there. He listened to her stories about the other patients in her group and how there were 2 people she knew from her old hometown. He told her a bit about work and the fact that he'd have to play taxi for Deidara later that day and take him to the art museum for an exhibition.

“A museum? That sounds great, honey. Maybe you could learn a thing or two.”, his mom said and met his glare with an innocent smile when they arrived back at the rehabilitation center.

“Education is important, Hidan.”

“Yeah, I'm sure staring at ugly paintings all day will greatly improve my retail skills.”

“I'm sure you 3 will have fun. Who was that other one again by the way?”

“Sasori.”, he responded and scratched the back of his head at the thought of him, “He's Deidara's roommate.”

“Are you two friends as well?”

That was a question he genuinely didn't know the answer for. The last time he met him was when they had that half-drunken conversation on the front porch and he still wasn't sure what to make of that.

“Nah, not really.”, he shrugged, “He's just a dude I know from high school.”

“Well maybe you could try to befriend him.”

“Are you serious? Did you forget how old I am again? I'm 22, not 12.”

“I'm sure he'd be better company than that other friend of yours. What was his name again? Yahiko? Yes, him. That boy has way too many piercings. His poor mother.”

“Oh god, please don't start with that again. He runs a tattoo studio, that's kind of his brand.”

His mother pursed her lips.

“I'm just counting the days until you arrive with one of those horrible metal sticks in your nose.”

“You know what I might just do it if you keep-”

“Mrs. Sato?”

Both their heads snapped up in surprise. A nurse in white work-wear jogged up to them and gave her an accusing look.

“You were supposed to show up for your appointment at the nurse's office at 9:30. It is half past ten now. We've been trying to reach you Mrs. Sato, is it possible that you muted your phone?”

His mother widely opened her eyes.

“Goddamn it!”, she exclaimed and slapped her forehead with her hand. “I'm so sorry, I forgot. My son is visiting me today and-”

“And your insurance company just contacted us, too.”, the nurse impatiently interrupted, completely ignoring her.

“The caller is on hold at the moment. It appears to be urgent. We are expecting you at the nurse's office in five minutes.”

The woman swiftly turned around and hurried back inside without another word, the automatic doors closing behind her.

“I can't believe I forgot about the appointment.”, his mom said and groaned, “I better go inside. Hidan-”

“It's cool.”, he said with a shrug, “I'll wait outside.”

“No.”

She shook her head and put a hand on his shoulder.

“I don't want you to waste your time here. Go have fun with your friends.”

He looked at her skeptically.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. Don't worry about it. I just feel bad that you had to come here all this way for such a short amount of time.”

“...Alright. Fine.”

They quickly hugged goodbye because the nurse came back with crossed arms and an angry look. He saw a few tears glistening in his mother's eyes and their hug left a wet stain on the shoulder of his jacket which he awkwardly wiped away on his way to the car. A few leafs had been blown on the windshield and he absently threw them on the ground, gaze fixed on the clinic. He bit his lip and wondered why he felt so angry.

*

The breeze had calmed down a bit by the time he finally arrived at the parking lot. He climbed out of his car and shot a quick text to Deidara before making a beeline for the dorm rooms. The sturdy, red brick-wall building proudly presented the words “Academy for Traditional and Modern Arts” in fat, golden letters that reflected the sunlight. The clock above the letters showed 12:37 and a flag danced in the merciful breeze on top of the roof. A small fountain made out of marble in front of the entrance happily gurgled water out of abstract metal tubes and a couple of pigeons were flocking around an overfilled trashcan next to it. He heard hip-hop music coming from the other side of the parking lot where a few students were practicing tricks on their skateboards, some others were gathered at the fountain and a few were waiting for the bus on the other side of the road.

Hidan shoved past a couple of students blocking the door and went inside, taking an immediate left for Deidara's room. The small whiteboard next to his door had “Art is a Bang” written on it with a thick marker and a huge, colorful explosion was drawn beneath it. On the bottom right corner was a little caricature, the face of a man, and he unfortunately recognized him as Okamoto Tarō, Deidara's favorite artist. For someone who didn't care about art he knew way too much about it; he blamed his best friend for that.

„Okay I'm here you little pest so where are we headed?”, he asked after barging in without knocking and looked around, only to find Sasori staring at him with a slightly annoyed face. He was holding a brush in his hand and sitting in front an unfinished painting.

“Let me guess: he forgot to tell you, didn't he?”

Hidan furrowed his brows in confusion.

“What are you talking about?”

Sasori let out a sigh.

“I knew it. What a moron. The trip's canceled. His uncle just picked him up, he has to help out at the pottery today.”

“What? Are you for real? I drove here for nothing?!”

“Pretty much.”

He threw his head back and loudly groaned as he sat down on Deidara's messy bed.

“Fucking hell. I'm gonna kick his ass next time I see him. And why didn't _you_ say anything?”

“That's not my responsibility. And it's not like I had a way of reaching you.”

“Alright, whatever. I'm lea- holy shit is that a _scorpion_?!”

He pointed at the glass terrarium next to Sasori's table and hurried over to look at it. And in fact, he was right, there was a black scorpion hiding under a decorative chunk of wood. Only his large claws were peaking out and he squatted down in front of the terrarium to get a better look at it.

“Since when do you keep one of those?”, he asked over his shoulder, “And why is it so fucking huge?”

Sasori left his chair and walked up to him, putting his hands on his knees. His petrol green shirt was a tad too big for him and revealed a little bit of his collarbone. Hidan quickly glanced away when he caught himself staring.

“ _Heterometrus petersii_.”

“Hetero-what?”

“This is an Asian forest scorpion.”, Sasori explained, “She's already pretty old, that's why she's so big. I'm not the owner though, I'm just taking care of her for a friend for a while.”

“Wait, that's a girl? Does she have a name?”

“Yeah. My friend calls her 'Cupcake'. Hey, don't tap the glass.”

He snorted and removed his hand as he kept staring at the animal with fascination.

“Aren't you scared it will climb out and chew your face off one night?”, he joked with a grin, “I know Deidara's gonna be.”

Sasori shrugged.

“Not really. This species is pretty docile. They're not dangerous to humans. You could compare their sting to the one of a bee.”

He quirked and eyebrow at him.

“Why do you know so much about that stuff?”

“I used to have pet scorpions back when I was a teenager. But I never had one of those. Mine were actually poisonous.”

“Seriously? My parents would've crapped their pants if I brought home something like that.”

Sasori silently sat back down on his chair and picked up his paint brush.

“Well...”, he began with a small huff, “Since we're not going to the museum today you don't really have a reason to be here anymore. Deidara's probably not coming back until 6 or 7, I'm not sure.”

Hidan took a few steps back from the terrarium and shoved his hands in his pockets.

“Why don't you just go by yourself? You still have the ticket and everyth- oh right, your car's at the garage.”

A simple nod was the response. He watched him put his headphones back in as he slowly backed out of the room, hesitating. Why was he hesitating?

“Hey listen, do you still wanna go?”, he suddenly asked before he could stop himself.

Sasori turned around with a surprised look in his eyes and mustered him warily.

“Are you still trying to dunk my phone into the toilet somehow?”

“What? No. I mean yeah, I would if you'd let me.”

“Not happening. Wait, are you being serious right now?”

Hidan awkwardly scratched the back of his neck and thought the same.

“Actually I should be back at work right now.”, he said, “I only took the morning off so I could visit my mom. But Tobi, that deranged nutcase, is in today and I can't fucking stand him so...yeah. I hate those stupid museums as well but not as much. I'd prefer that over having to deal with him any time.”

A smile ghosted over Sasori's lips but he quickly pressed them into a thin line as he rolled the paint brush around between his fingers.

“Well, we still have time to get there...”, he murmured lost in thought, “And the ticket is for two people, technically.”

“Sounds good. Let's bounce then. Let me just talk to my boss real quick.”

He left the dorm room and dialed up Jiraiya's number in the hallway. He didn't sound exactly pleased when Hidan told him that something had come up with his mom and asked if he could have the rest of the day off as well. For a brief second he wondered what the actual hell he was doing but then he heard Tobi's voice in the background and decided it was for the best. Him and Sasori weren't something one could call friends either but it was better than digging up Tobi out of a pile of boxes he'd dropped on himself. Again. When Hidan returned he found Sasori already dressed in black jeans and a red hoodie, ready to leave. His hair looked a little disheveled from changing and he immediately pushed it away when his first thought was that it looked kind of adorable and they left the building.

*

“And this concludes today's special tour. Thank you so much for visiting and please enjoy the rest of our wonderful museum!”

“Oh my god, that was _so_ boring!”, Hidan groaned when the group diminished and the tour guide was out of earshot.

“You didn't actually have to come along. You do realize that, right?”

“What else was I supposed to do? Wait in the car like a dog or what?”

Sasori rolled his eyes as they walked down the marble staircase leading outside. Hidan spotted an empty paper cup lying around and he jogged down to kick it, much to the disapproval of the security guard who threw him a foul stare when coffee residue spread out on the stairs. He bit down the urge to show him the finger and pushed the door open.

“Finally!”, he exclaimed, “The sun. Fresh air. No abstract paintings from dudes with fucking weird names I don't know how to say.”

He stretched his arms with a low grunt and let out a relieved sigh.

“Kandinsky isn't that hard to pronounce.”, Sasori stated as he brought his lighter to the tip of his cigarette.

“Yeah it is! Just what do you artsy people like about this? I don't get it. What's so great about a picture a dead guy drew? He's dead.”

“Art is about expressing yourself. And preserving whatever it had meant for you for as long as possible even after your death.”

“Sounds kinda kookoo to me.”

“A lot of artists used it as a sort of vent.”

“Vent? For what?”

Sasori shrugged.

“I wouldn't know. For everything, really.”

“Well if I need to vent I talk to someone. Or beat the shit out of something. They should've done that, too, instead of cutting an ear off like that Dean Gogg guy did.”

“It's _Van Gogh_.”

“Whatever.”, he took a drag from his own cigarette, “I'm just glad it's over. And I can't believe you had the balls to loudly correct that guide every time he said something wrong.”

“Someone had to.”

“And that someone is you?”

“Would you have been a better choice?”

“...Got me there.”

They walked up to the car and got in. Hidan typed the route back home on his phone and they were almost at the highway when his stomach suddenly rumbled.

“Damn. I'm hungry. First thing I'll do when we get back is get something to eat.”

“There's a diner a couple of miles ahead of us. It's kinda sleazy but the food is good.”

“Really? Sweet! That's where we're going.”

He paused.

“I mean if...that's cool with you. I can also drop you off first.”

Sasori raised an eyebrow.

“If it bothered me I wouldn't have suggested it, would I? And I'm also a little hungry myself.”

“What, that dumb exhibition didn't satisfy you enough?”

“Shut up.”

Hidan threw him a mocking grin and switched lanes, following the road until they reached the diner. The name “Roadkill” shone in thick, old-school letters on a tall white sign. The parking lot was full of trucks and dark car tracks and the inside didn't look much better either. The interior decoration was straight from the 50's, with red leather booths and white tables, but it wasn't well kept so everything carried a gritty, used flare. There were coffee stains on the black-and-white tile floor and dusty photographs and yellowed news articles hung on the walls in wooden frames. The place even had a jukebox but it was out of order and replaced by a radio playing a country song. Two truckers were sitting at the counter on high stools, silently nipping at their coffee and reading the newspaper.

The waitress didn't even look up from her crossword puzzle when they entered, only the doorbell chimed a greeting. They chose a booth all the way in the back and picked their orders from the sticky menu card. The table was full of drawings and writings scratched into the surface and Hidan read things like “haha gay” and various interpretations of that sentence multiple times.

“This place is fucking gross.”, he said after the waitress took their orders.

“Told you so.”

“Hey, do you think the cook will spit in our food or something? Because this is the kinda vibe I'm getting from here.”

Sasori let out a snort.

“Don't make me think about it.”

“And look at this.”, he pointed at another scribbled sentence, “This says 'I will murder you'.”

“So what? Are you scared?”

“Kinda. You were the one who dragged me to a remote diner in ass-crack nowhere. I'm slowly starting to think that you've been plotting to end me. Haven't heard anything from Deidara, too.”

He wiggled his eyebrows.

“Did you kill him? Am I next?”

Sasori couldn't hide his smile this time and he shrugged.

“Always expect the unexpected.”

“Seems like you'll get your crazy revenge fantasy fulfilled after all.”

“Revenge fantasy? I can't think of a reason to kill you. Yet. It's kind of a hassle anyway these days.”

“You sure? This is your chance.”

“Yeah but not the last one. I like to spice things up once in a while.”

“Kinky.”

After a short while the waitress brought them their orders and Hidan eagerly dug into his burger. He focused on his food and busied himself by pouring all of the dipping sauce on his fries. Sasori ate some of the waffles he'd gotten but didn't finish his meal, he just halfheartedly pushed them around on his plate before eventually putting down his fork and looking out the window, apparently lost in thought.

“Why do you think I hate you?”, he suddenly asked and Hidan was caught so off-guard he almost choked on his burger. He drowned his coughing fit with his coke and wiped over his mouth with the back of his hand.

“...What?”, he asked, dumbfounded.

“You know exactly what I'm talking about. At the party?”

“What party?”

“At that cabin? Two weeks ago?”

“Sorry. Doesn't ring a bell.”

“Stop fucking with me.”

“Dead serious over here.”

Sasori rolled his eyes with a huff.

“You're insufferable. Forget it.”

“Alright, fine.”

Hidan gave in and pinched the bridge of his nose. Curse you, alcohol. He shoved a couple of fries in his mouth to buy time to think but he couldn't come up with a clever excuse.

“Yes, I do remember that stupid thing I said. But that was kinda-drunk me talking. He's got no clue what he's saying what-so-fucking-ever. So just forget it.”, he lamely said and scratched at the stubble of his chin.

“...If you say so.”

Sasori put his fork on his plate and pushed it to the side, the ceramic rattling as it slid across the table.

“But just for the record, I don't hate you. Even though you drew dicks in my sketchbook once in high school.”

“Wait, that was _yours_?!”

“Yes?”

Hidan let out a barking laugh.

“Holy shit! Really? Yeah, I remember doing that. Didn't know it belonged to you, though. Sorry, man.”

“That was a new expensive one. Your apology means nothing to me.”

“Oof. Guess I'm still on thin ice then.”

“Glad we're on the same page.”

They looked at each other and laughed. Hidan noticed the small dimples forming on Sasori's face and he cursed internally. He wasn't sure if he wanted to start getting along with him, and he was honestly more leaning towards a “no” but right now that guy made it really...hard for him.

They finished their meals, payed and left the grubby diner behind them. It was late evening when they finally arrived at campus. The street lights were already on and the area was pretty much empty, only a couple of students were sitting outside on the grass, listening to music. The air was warm and still, the breeze from the morning long gone. Hidan kept the engine running while Sasori got out of the car and slammed the door shut, looking at him through the open window.

“Thanks for the ride.”, he said.

“No big deal.”, Hidan answered as he shoved the gas money he'd been given in the glove compartment.

“That wasn't half as bad. Better than work anyway.”, he added, “I mean the museum sucked ass but-”

Sasori let out a small, amused huff.

“Yeah, the tour guide was terrible.”

“If you're planning on killing _him_ hit me up.”

“I'd send you a text but I don't have your number.”

“Oh yeah, right.”

He got his phone out and they quickly exchanged numbers. Sasori was biting his lip when he put his back in his pocket and Hidan caught himself staring again.

“So...see you around I guess?”, he lamely asked.

“Yeah.”, Sasori murmured with a nod, already backing away a few steps. When he actually flashed him a small grin before turning around and heading for the dorms he felt his heart flutter but he tried not to think anything of it. He steered his car back on the road and turned the volume up when a Nirvana song came on. The smile briefly re-appeared in his head but he pushed it away with a frown. What the hell was his problem today?

*

_June 7_ _th_ _2018_

“So walk us through it again, Mr. Sato.”

The police officer's voice sounded calm and gruff. Some of his words got swallowed by his graying beard every now and then. He vaguely gestured at the light-brown file in front of him with a meaty hand.

“When was the last time you saw Mr. Akasuna?”

The dark, lacquered wooden desk they were sitting at was full of them. Piles upon piles of case files, varying in shades of brown. Some folders and loose papers were sticking out of them or scattered across the dusty surface, covered with coffee mug prints. An overfilled ashtray next to a small, round cacti in a blue ceramic pot kept them company, overshadowed by the computer the man was staring at with narrowed eyes. He let out a low, strained grunt when he re-arranged his sitting position and opened the file, flicking through it with a wet thumb. His leather seat quietly squeaked in protest when he moved.

The second policeman leaning in the corner between the window sill and the bookcase crossed his arms and cleared his throat, subtly signaling Hidan to open his mouth. He ignored his impatient yet bored stare and kneaded his sweaty hands. His chair felt unwelcoming, like it wanted to spit him back out then and there.

“I...”, he slowly began, hesitating. “I already told you everything I know. I don't get why you asked me to come here again.”

“You better drop that attitude and work with us here, boy.”, the second policeman snapped, “This is not a joke. This is-”

“Calm down. Kid's just nervous. Why don't you go ahead and bring him a glass of water?”

The policeman huffed and left the room, letting the door fall shut behind him.

“Please excuse my colleague.”, the officer said with a warm smile, worsening the wrinkles around his eyes, “He's still new.”

“It's fine.”

He watched him as he carefully flicked through the file pages with a concentrated look on his face. The bottom of the computer mouse scratched over the pad as the police officer moved it and clicked on something. The sound felt uncomfortably loud. It was the only thing filling the silence, just like the white battered desk fan quietly whirling in a monotone sound. It made the papers flutter a little as it silently listened to the conversation.

“It says here that you last saw Mr. Akasuna around 9 pm at night on Wednesday, May 23th. Is that statement still correct?”

Hidan swallowed hard.

“Yes.”

“And at that evening, did you notice anything out of the ordinary? Like an unusual behavior or statement?”

“No. Nothing I could think of. We've never been that close.”

“Mhm.”

The man in the blue uniform hummed lowly and wrote something on his notepad. A glass of water was harshly shoved in his hand when the other policeman returned and it calmed his dry throat. His left leg was bouncing up and down and the vibration from the movement could be seen on the surface of the liquid. He quickly downed all of it and put the glass on the table afterwards, pressing his palms on his legs to calm his nerves. He looked around the room while the two policemen briefly exchanged a short conversation and his glance got hung up on a blackboard hanging on the wall to his right. It had a lot of different notes, papers and printed e-mails pinned to it. A big map took up most of the space with things scribbled and circled on it with red. But most prominent was the “Missing Person”-section. Pictures of five people in total hung there next to each other, three women and two men. He didn't recognize any of them; except for one.

He was asked a couple of other questions after that. He'd already gotten them before and pretty much offered the same answers. He was escorted outside with a handshake and a “thank you for coming” and relief flooded him when he finally heard the door shut behind him. He huffed. He saw Deidara sitting hunched over on a chair in the waiting room, fidgeting with his phone. His hair was messy and he looked tired as he absently chewed on his nails. Hidan slowly walked over to him but stopped when another blackboard caught his eye, or the “Missing”-poster pinned on it to be exact. He mustered it with an uneasy feeling. Sasori was looking blankly at the camera in a dark-green T-shirt with a coffee cup in his hand. He seemed somewhat disgruntled and a foreign arm was draped around his shoulder. Only a few strands of blond hair was proof of another person present in the picture who had been cut off and he immediately knew it was Deidara. He swallowed hard. It was probably him who had given the photograph to the police.

The description was short, the word “Missing” being the most prominent at the top. The bottom half of the paper was folded and cut into separate pieces, presenting the police's phone number with the request to immediately contact them if said person was seen. His left hand reached out automatically and he ripped one of the stripes off, unsure why. He carefully put it in the pocket of his jacket with his gaze fixed on the picture and the dry paper felt sticky against his sweaty fingers.

_Where are you?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! :-)  
> Chapter 2 is finally up. I'm sorry that it's not as long as the first one. My documents kept crashing for some reason and I lost a lot of the stuff I already wrote. I had to re-write almost everything and it really sucked but I'm done now! I will try to stick to my schedule this time and update every other Sunday/Monday. Thank you for the kudos so far! <3 I hope you enjoy this new direction I'm taking. Please drop a comment down below if you can. I don't like to beg for them but they always make my day and keep me motivated. No pressure, though. :-)  
> What did you think? Are you interested in reading chapter 3? I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.  
> See you in two weeks~  
> Lots of Love,  
> Rose xoxo


	3. Chapter 3

_Monday, June 4 th 2012_

“Alright. We're here.”

Kitsuchi climbed out of the car and slammed the door shut. He fixed and open button on his red-and-black lumberjack shirt and opened the trunk, heaving the large duffle bag on the ground with a grunt.

“There you go, son. Just wait here for a second, I have to park the car.”

Hidan nodded curtly and shoved his freezing hands in his pockets. It was a cold day. The sun was hidden behind gray clouds and he was shivering in his thin hoodie as he stood by and watched Deidara's uncle maneuver the dirty black jeep into the garage. He absently scratched at his left ear and jerked his hand away with a hiss when he was hit with a sharp, stinging pain. He felt a dull throb and knew he should stop touching it but the wound was healing now and he wanted nothing more than to rip off the bandage and give it a good, hard scratch to calm the itching. He cursed internally and forced his hands back in his sweatpants. Meanwhile the engine's roar grew more echoing before it was killed off and the garage door loudly rattled when Kitsuchi pressed a button on his keys to close it. He walked up to him with his hands on his hips, gaze fixed on the grime of his boots which he tried to wipe off on the well-trimmed lawn.

“Let's go inside, kid.”

The front porch was painted in a light blue. His duffle bag felt heavy in his hand and began to create red streaks on his palm as he waited for Kitsuchi to unlock the door.

“You've been here before so I don't think you need an introduction. Kurotsuchi and Deidara are both still at school so you can settle down and make yourself at home in peace.”, Kitsuchi said over his shoulder while fidgeting with the lock until it clicked. He pushed the door open and the fly screen after that and went inside, scratching at his beard.

“Come, I'll show you the guest room.”

They walked upstairs. Their footsteps made a dull sound against the floor as they passed the bathroom and the open study overfilled with pottery figures varying in size. Deidara's uncle switched the lights on and turned around, giving him a questioning look.

“This is it. Do you like it?”

Hidan had never seen the guest room before. It was plain with white curtains, a small brown closet and a desk in front of the tilted window. The bedsheets looked fresh, like they'd just been changed and two fluffy towels laid on the old, gray computer chair. He looked around and shrugged before throwing the duffle bag and his backpack on the bed.

“Sure, whatever.”

Kitsuchi nodded.

“Good. Well kid, I have some matters to take care of. The pottery ain't gonna run itself. There's leftover pizza from yesterday in the fridge, you want some? No? Alright. I'll be in the study, got a few phone calls to make. If you need anything just say the word.”

He walked out and closed the door behind him. Hidan looked around once more before slowly sitting down on the bed. He felt his injury act up again but he successfully ignored it this time because both his hands were busy with his phone. He swiped across the display and it lit up, asking for the password first and then showing him notifications about two new text messages, the first one being from Deidara; the second was from his mother. He bit his lip.

\--------------------

**From: Drittney Spears**

**'Hey are you there yet?????? :-O :-D**

**Lmao this is gonna be so cool'**

**To:**

**'yea am here'**

**From:**

**'cooool**

**Bio sucks I'm gonna kms**

**Pain and the others r asking where you are what should I tell them??'**

**To:**

**'knife fight'**

**From:**

**'Srsly???'**

**To: **

**'yea'**

**From:**

**'Ok lol'**

\--------------------

His thumb hovered above the second message. He hesitated but decided to open the chat. He'd have to read it someday anyways.

\--------------------

**From: Mom**

**'Good morning honey...**

**Judging by the time Kitsuchi must've already picked you up from home....**

**I hope you have a great time with them...don't forget about the doctor's appointment...**

**it's Thursday 11:30...I have to give up my phone now and I don't know when I'll get it back yet...I love you...be a good kid...and just know your mom is sorry for everything.'**

**\--------------------**

He rolled his eyes and sighed. His hand was itching to throw the damn device against the wall. He scratched at his ear instead until it started bleeding.

*

The air felt warm against his skin. It was dark and quiet, only the cicadas were chirping in the distance. Fireflies danced around him on the grass and he heard the faint bark of a dog. The moon was shyly hiding behind the tall pine trees. He was sitting on the front porch, his feet resting on the neatly paved footpath. He pressed his hand against his eye when smoke from his cigarette got in and winced, cursing under his breath.

“You shouldn't be smoking that crap, kid. You're 16, for God's sake.”

Kitsuchi's glance was stern when he turned around to meet it. He hadn't noticed him coming outside as well.

“Whatever.”, Hidan murmured and took another deep drag, wiping the water from his burning eye.

Kitsuchi sat down next to him on the garden chair with a huff and nipped at his beer.

“What're you doing here all by yourself? Can't sleep? It's almost 12 am. You got school tomorrow.”

He shrugged and didn't respond to the question. The tip of his smoke softly sizzled and he observed the red dot slowly growing longer and darker.

“Alright. We don't have to talk if you don't want to.”

Deidara's uncle took another gulp from his beer and suppressed a burp. They silently sat next to each other for a while, both lost in their own thoughts while the moon crept up behind the dark forest ever so slowly.

“Have you heard from your mother yet?”, Kitsuchi eventually asked after emptying his bottle.

“...Nope. Not since last Monday.”

“Be patient. They're gonna return her phone after 2 weeks or so. Depends. Sometimes you can get it back earlier.”

“...Cool.”

“Are you holding up alright, kiddo?”

Hidan furrowed his brows and looked at him.

“Yeah. Why?”

“Don't know, you tell me. You seem kinda bummed out there. Something you wanna talk about after all?”

“...No. I'm fine.”

“You can stay at home tomorrow if you want. I'll call the school.”

“Nah, I'll go. It's boring as fuck here anyway.”

Deidara's uncle let out a barking laugh.

“You sure got a foul mouth. Look, if you're so bored I can take you with me. I'm always in need of an extra set of hands down at the pottery.”

“...Really?”

“Yeah, why not? If you don't feel like going you can help me out. This is an exception, though. I don't want you to miss too much school.”

Hidan considered it. He blew a trail of smoke into the air and put the cigarette out on the ground, rubbing the butt into the pavement until the tobacco residue came out.

“Okay. Thanks, Mr. Oshiro.”

“Cut that last-name bull, son. I've known you since the day you were born. Kitsuchi's fine.”

He stood up with a grunt and gave him a smile while he walked up to the front door.

“Come, kid. I'd like to show you something.”

They walked upstairs to the study. Deidara's room was silent but TV noise came from Kurotsuchi's room, sometimes accompanied by a short giggle. The study was small and cramped, now filled with new, different kinds of sculptures, pots and ceramic goods. The desk in the middle was stuffed with incoming orders and unopened letters, softly illuminated by the light of the desk lamp. The cabinet creaked when it was opened and Kitsuchi pulled out a photo album overfilled with pictures to the brim. He brushed over the brown leather cover with his hand and sat down on the tiny sofa with an expecting look.

“Want to take a look at it?”

“What's that?”, Hidan asked and sat down next to him.

“These are some old pictures of me, my friends and family. Your mom's in it, too. You know we go way back, right? Thought I might share some of this with you. Here, look at this.”

He opened the album.

“This was back in our old hometown. We were both still teenagers. Us and some friends took a trip to the sea that day.”

Kitsuchi had a fond smile on his face.

“That was in the 80's. Do you see that? This is the first car I ever had.”, he chuckled, “Damn, what a proud airhead I was back then.”

The picture showed a retro looking car upon a hill with an open trunk filled with a blue cooler, some wooden baskets and a red beach umbrella. In the background was the blue ocean, glistening in the sun and licking at the yellow sand. A group of people stood together in front of the car hugging each other and waving at the camera.

“See? That's me right there. The tall bastard with the red bandana. Your mother was actually holding the camera. She loved photography and always took pictures of us whenever she could.”

Hidan simply nodded, already starting to get bored. He played with the thought of saying he was tired and wanted to go to sleep to escape the situation but he somehow couldn't bring himself to do it.

“This is one of my favorites.”

Kitsuchi flipped some pages over and put his finger an a photo of a young woman on a bike. She was standing with her back to the camera, her head turned behind her shoulder and she was flashing a bright, toothy laugh. Her blonde hair swaying in the wind was styled into a perm and her pink flannel shirt was tied together at the bottom, revealing a black belt supporting her flared jeans. She looked incredibly young and happy and it took Hidan a while to recognize the person as his mother.

“...Is that her?”

“Yes. This was during summer vacation. Only a couple of weeks before...well.”, Kitsuchi sighed, “Before she left.”

“Left? Like, for college or what?”

“Not...exactly. Hidan, do you...know anything about your family? Your grandparents for example?”

“No. All family I ever had was my mom and stepfucker.”

“Hey, don't be disrespectful.”

“What? Fuck him, he was an asshole.”

“It doesn't matter. It's not good to speak ill about the dead, kid.”

“...Whatever. Why did mom leave?”

Kitsuchi leaned back on the sofa and crossed his arms, his glance fixed on an imaginary point somewhere out the window.

“I don't know to this day. She never told me the exact reason. See, we've been friends since I can remember. We used to be neighbors, me and her. But after her father started making lots of money thanks to that new fancy job of his they sent her to a private school. They moved to the suburbs as well, wealthy family and all. We still remained friends but...it became more and more difficult for her. She hated it. I guess her old folks started to get too controlling. Or maybe it was something entirely different. Hell, I have no idea. Anyway, one day her parents decided that they've had enough of her rebelling against them and soiling their good name so they...kicked her out.”

He absently scratched at his beard and sighed.

“One night, just after she turned 17 I think, she called me up and asked me to drive her to the train station. She got a ticket and just left. And that was the last time I saw her in person for many years. When we met again it was right before you were born.”

Hidan didn't know what to say. He awkwardly scratched the back of his neck and tried to process the whole story but it just didn't make a lot of sense to him.

“Alright. So my grandparents are a bunch of dicks. I kinda already figured.”

He gave him a confused look.

“Why are you telling me this?”

A sigh escaped Kitsuchi's lips.

“Well, I think it's about time you knew a bit about your roots. Doesn't take a scientist to know she still keeps all of that a secret from you. I know she probably has her reasons but...I think it's not fair. So I wanted to show you that you have a family out there. Even if you don't know each other yet.”

Hidan slightly nodded, still confused. He was too busy trying to understand what he'd been told so he barely listened to the follow-up. When he apparently missed a question he'd been asked Deidara's uncle closed the album with a small chuckle.

“I'm sorry, kid. Didn't mean to fry your brain there. It's late, let's go to bed already. We can keep looking at it tomorrow if you want.”

He stood up and was about to return the album to the cabinet when a thin white envelope slipped through the pages and fluttered to the floor. Hidan grabbed it, not thinking much of it until he saw the address on the front.

“Why do you have a letter for my mom in there?”

Kitsuchi's eyes visibly widened. He nervously licked over his lips but quickly regained his composure.

“Oh, don't worry about it. This must be one of my letters from an old flame. Don't know how that got in there. Just give it to me, I'll put it away.”

Hidan hesitated.

“Why does it have my mom's name on it then?”, he asked carefully.

“Look, the envelopes must've gotten mixed up somehow, I don't remember. There was a time when I held onto your mom's mail. Now give it to me.”

“...Can you let me take a look?”

“What?”, Kitsuchi laughed nervously and shook his head.

“No can do, boy. That's private business.”, he said and impatiently stretched his hand out. “Now give me that and go to bed.”

“I just want to know who it's from.”

“Goddamn it kid, like hell I remember. I told you it's just the envelope. What's inside isn't actually for her. It's really not a big deal.”

“Well if it's not a fucking big deal let me read it.”

“Hidan.”

Kitsuchi's tone changed drastically from calm to irritated.

“I said no. Give. Me. The letter.”

“I just wanna take a look!”

He was about to rip it open but it got violently snatched out of his hand.

“Hey! Are you shitting me?! Give it back, you fuckin-”

Kitsuchi hurriedly stuffed the letter in his pocket and gestured him to stop when Hidan got up and tried to get it back.

“Watch your tongue with me, son.”

Kitsuchi's voice sounded low and intimidating and his glare alone was powerful enough to shut him up.

“This doesn't concern you. Now go to bed.”

Hidan scoffed and threw his hands up.

“I just-come on, let me-”

“Hidan! Off to bed, _now_!”

At first he didn't want to. He wanted to stay right there until Kitsuchi would give in and let him open the envelope. But the way he looked revealed that there was no way he'd go back on his word so Hidan cursed under his breath and begrudgingly left, slamming the door to his room shut. He couldn't tell why but he knew he was being lied to. He was going to get that letter, no matter how.

*

“Dude, I don't know...We're gonna get in trouble.”

“Come on you pussy, it's not that hard! Just sneak in there while we're gone and try to find that stupid thing. It's a white envelope with my mom's name on it. It's probably still in the photo album.”

Deidara groaned while chewing on his cereal.

“I don't wanna get grounded again.”, he quietly whined, “What am I supposed to tell the others at theater practice? It's only after school, no way he's letting me keep doing that if he finds out.”

Hidan huffed and rolled his eyes. It was early in the morning and he was incredibly tired and irritated from a lack of sleep. He'd spent all night trying to come up with a plan and now that he had one his best friend just _had_ to play stubborn.

“I gotta know what's in there!”, he said, careful not to raise his voice too much since Deidara's uncle was in the room next door.

“What do you even hope to find out? I think it's a bad idea. You're obsessing over this too much.”

“Just think about it, stupid. Why would he freak so hard like he did yesterday if there's nothing to hide?”

“Who knows?”

“Well he fucking does! And I want to know, too.”

Deidara rolled his eyes. He finished his cereal and wiped some milk from his mouth, biting his lip.

“Okay, _fiiine_. I'll help you. But just for the record, you're taking the heat if this plan goes to shit.”

“Deal.”

“Are you guys ready?”

Kitsuchi suddenly waltzed into the kitchen, an empty plate in his hand. He licked some bacon grease from his fingers and gave them an expecting look.

“Grab your things, it's time for school. Where's Kurotsuchi?”

He put the plate in the sink and disappeared again, calling his daughter's name and knocking on her door. Deidara hurriedly followed shut and told him that he'd be taking his bike today and while Kitsuchi got a little bit confused by that he let him do his thing and didn't question it further. Hidan prayed that Deidara was smart enough to go through with the plan. He was supposed to hide out somewhere and then come back to search the study as soon as they left to drop Kurotsuchi off at her school. When they arrived at the pottery he still didn't get a text from him and he started to get worried. What if he chickened out and just went straight to school? Kitsuchi recently started working mostly from his study due to his back pains and was home almost all the time. This was their only chance.

“You okay, son?”

Hidan's head snapped up and he nodded.

“Yeah, sure.”

“You look worried. If this is about yesterday-”

“No, it's fine, everything's cool. Just a little...headache.”

Kitsuchi nodded and put his jacket on the coat rack, returning to the front of the pottery store.

“You can hang out in the break room for a bit.”, he called, “I'll be right back.”

Hidan let out a sigh of relief and sat down on a chair, one of the few things that wasn't covered with pots, plates or sculptures. Finally alone. He fished out his phone and hurriedly unlocked it when the device informed him about a new text message from Deidara.

\--------------------

**From: Drittney Spears**

**'Dude I cant find the letter'**

**To:**

**'wtf are u fr'**

**From:**

**'I'm serious it's not here I searched everywhere :-('**

**To:**

**'fuck**

**r u sure**

**look somewhere else**

**bedroom maybe???'**

**From:**

**'Nope**

**Hidan let's just give it up I'll be late for school**

**teach is gonna kill me'**

**To: **

**'shit alright ur useless Deidara'**

**From:**

**'Love you too dipshit**

**I hope you know I'm risking my academic career for you**

**> :-('**

\--------------------

Hidan cursed and put his phone away. Where was that thing? Maybe he threw it away? He wanted to shoot Deidara another text telling him to look in the trash when Kitsuchi suddenly called:

“Hidan! Can you come here for a second?”

“Coming!”, he responded with a grunt while struggling to type out the message. He shoved his phone away and made his way to the front of the store but suddenly something caught his eye. Something white and rectangular peaking out of Kitsuchi's brown jacket. For a second he couldn't believe his eyes. But it was real. It was the letter. Bingo. He couldn't stop thinking about it all the time while he helped moving pottery items from one place to another. He waited until Kitsuchi would let him take a break and finally, after a few hours of work luck seemed to be on his side. A female customer came inside carrying a large, broken and expensive looking flower pot and asked if there was any way to repair it. When Kitsuchi and the woman were wrapped up in conversation long enough he quickly sneaked into the back and grabbed the letter. His heart was hammering in his throat as he nervously traced his fingers across the envelope and took it with him to the toilet. He carefully shut the door behind him and slid down on the floor, letting out a breath he didn't knew he'd been holding. There was no sender's name, only his mother's and an address belonging to a motel. He furrowed his brows and wondered if it was from the time after she got kicked out from home. The glue on the backside was loose and he was able to easily open it without any tearing. A thin sheet of paper was the only thing inside. The writing seemed hurried and messy and the blue ink was already slightly faded. He bit his lip and wiped his sweaty hands on his jeans, hoping Kitsuchi was still busy with the customer. After that he completely unfolded the paper and started reading.

_Midori,_

_It's me. Sorry I had to leave earlier than planned but me and my family are moving in three weeks tops and I'm about to be promoted so I'm a little busy over here. My wife was starting to get suspicious so I changed my phone number. Stop calling me and don't answer this letter. Just think about what you could potentially ruin. They cannot know about this, ever._

_I hope you've made up your mind about your little problem. If you're going to get rid of it, I put 200 bucks in here for you to pay for the procedure. If not, that's your choice but you're a smart girl, I'm sure you'll make the right decision. Just don't expect me to have any part in it. As far as I'm concerned, it's not mine._

_I know a guy who knows a guy who can give you a small corner office job just in case. He owes me. Call the number down below. Everything's taken care of, you don't have to pay a cent. I know it's far away but trust me, it's a better place to live than that shithole motel. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the time we've spent together. But fuck, I can't leave my family. I told you right from the beginning that this was nothing serious. I also told you it wouldn't end well if you tried to take this too far. You didn't listen. And the worst part is I didn't listen to myself either._

_Let me do you a favor. Take the job, I promise you're going to be better off there than the diner. It's stable and pays well._

_Never try to contact me again. Move on with your life and find someone who's worthy of your time. We're never going to see each other again and if we do, act like you don't know me. Consider this our final goodbye. I'm sorry. Maybe in our next life things will be different._

_A._

Down below was a scribbled number in thick black letters. The money was gone. He kept reading and re-reading the letter over and over again until the sentences were swirling around in his brain and he had to put it down. He swallowed hard. Anger was building up in his chest and he didn't know what to do with it. He didn't know what to do at all. At first he refused to acknowledge it but deep down he knew. The date on the paper was from 1995. This was a letter from his father.

*

“Thanks for helping out today, kid. I appreciate it. Those back pains have been killing me.”

“No big deal.”

The jeep rocked up and down as it drove over a small pothole. Hidan was sitting in the passenger seat and looking out the window, lost in thought. His injury was slightly throbbing but he tried to ignore it. The sun was setting and he put down the glare protection to shield his eyes. He felt Kitsuchi's stare coming from the side and he wished he would just leave him alone.

“Look, I think we should talk and clear the air about yesterday.”, he unfortunately began like he could read his mind, “I'm sorry. I reacted...poorly when you were just being curious. I didn't mean to snap at you like that.”

Hidan simply shrugged.

“It's cool. Whatever. None of my business, I get it.”

“No, no, you don't understand.”, Kitsuchi let out a sigh and ran a hand across his tired looking face.

“This letter...you were right. It does belong to your mother. She asked me to keep it because...well. You'll find out soon enough.”

“What do you mean?”

“I decided to give it to you. You deserve to read it.”

Kitsuchi shoved his hand into his jacket and pulled out the envelope with a smile. Little did he know that it had already been taken once and then carefully placed back so he wouldn't notice. A part of Hidan regretted doing that.

“There you go.”, Deidara's uncle said, “You can keep it or give it back afterwards. Just take your time. And if you need to talk, I'll be there, boy.”

“...No.”

“No?”

“I'm-I don't want that stupid fucking thing.”

Kitsuchi raised his eyebrows, the envelope still in his hand.

“A-are you sure? I thought you might want to-”

Hidan vehemently shook his head.

“No. I don't care anymore. Fuck this.”

He crossed his arms and glanced back outside, watching the evening traffic mix into a blur as they passed it.

“Well...Alright then. The offer's still up if you ever change your mind.”

Kitsuchi slowly put the paper back in his pocket and focused back on the road, scratching at his beard from time to time. The radio played an old country song and he hummed along to it but stayed quiet otherwise. The topic was never mentioned again.

*

_Monday, May 28_ _th_ _2018_

The windshield wipers loudly screeched. He really needed to get them fixed sometime soon. Rain hailed down on the roof of his car as he pulled up to work and killed the engine. A large puddle had formed on the ground, reflecting the pink glare of the shop's name, but this time he was smart enough to walk around it and opened the door. The automatic shop bell rang an obnoxious, short melody as he walked inside and brushed off the wet dirt from his shoes on the “Welcome” mat. The lights were already on, he heard the faint sound of the radio and judging by the smell the coffee machine was running as well. He changed clothes in the break room and threw everything in his locker, slamming it shut with a loud yawn. The coffee cup warmed his fingers as he got the cash register running for today and strutted outside through the back door. His colleague Obito gave him a curt nod on his way there which he barely responded to and shoved a cigarette in his mouth as soon as he stood under the metal roof. He took a deep drag and put his cup on the small plastic table before fishing his phone out and absently scrolling through social media. It was way too early yet and he was still to tired to comprehend much of what he saw but his sleepiness made way for confusion when an incoming call from Deidara flashed across the screen.

“Yeah?”, he murmured while wiping the sleep from his eyes, “What's up?”

“Hey, Hidan.”, Deidara's voice sounded strangely off on the other line, “We kinda have...a situation going on over here.”

“Why? Did someone steal your dumb clay or what?”

“...No.”

He furrowed his eyebrows as he blew a trail of smoke in the air.

“You sound weird, dude. Is everything okay?”

“No...yeah...I have no idea. The principal just called the police. Sasori didn't come back home. I thought he was just running late when he missed curfew on Friday but he didn't return all weekend. One of our profs tried to reach him when he missed all of our classes today but he wouldn't answer his phone. He won't answer me either. Have you seen him maybe?”

“Holy shit.”, Hidan said, “No, I haven't. Fuck, are you serious?”

“Do I sound like I'm joking or what?!”, Deidara snapped.

“Hey, relax. You don't know what's going on. I dunno, is he seeing someone? Maybe he's just-”

“No, he's not, and-shit, I'm worried. I think something's wrong.”

“Did your school really call the police?”

“Yeah, they have to. It's a general rule. And they think something's happened to him.”

Hidan ran a hand through his hair, struggling to process everything with his still barely functioning brain.

“Are you sure it's that bad? Maybe he's, I don't know, at the doctor's or some shit.”, he guessed.

“You don't get it. This isn't like him to disappear without saying anything.”

“Dude, I'm sure he's fine and he'll be back in no time.”

“I don't know...”, Deidara murmured, “I'm not so sure about that.”

“Look, just...don't get into one of your crazy moods. Alright? Do you want me to drop by after work? We can figure this out.”

“Yeah...yeah, that'd be great, man.”

Deidara sounded relieved on the other line.

“Okay, cool.”, Hidan took a deep breath, “I'm working until 8 today. So it'll take me a while. But I'll be there. You need anything from the gas station?”

“...Can you grab me an energy drink or something? I'd get it myself but-”

“It's fine, dude. Really. See you later, alright?”

“Okay. Bye.”

He ended the call and let out a deep, long exhale. What the hell just happened? He briefly remembered that smile Sasori flashed him after he dropped him off at campus and bit his lip. No, this couldn't be real. Could it? He finished his smoke and went back inside, feeling a little beside himself. He continued working until late evening and so did the rain. It kept drumming against the shop windows and the puddle outside almost doubled in size by the time the clock hit 8 pm. Customers were rare and Hidan was thankful he hadn't had to deal with any shoplifters or crazy old women who escaped from the nursing home. Even the tech guy from the surveillance company didn't show up to install the new cameras. His boss was going to be really happy about that. The only thing that bothered him was that Obito had left early so he was alone and in charge of wrapping everything up. He finished taking care of the cash register for the day and grabbed a bucket and a mop from the back to clean the floors. The radio wailed some old-school Rock 'n Roll song and he lightly bobbed his head to the beat as he carelessly spread the soapy water across the wooden material, not caring if he was doing a sloppy job. He was too distracted by his thoughts anyway. He fished out his phone and sent a quick text to Deidara, asking him which kind of energy drink he wanted when suddenly the shop bell rang.

“Fuck.”, he quietly hissed, remembering he'd forgotten to lock up the front door.

“Sorry, we're closed!”, he exasperatedly called from the other side of the store, “You have to come back tomorrow.”

He internally groaned and threw his head back when he heard footsteps sounding off at the front and prepared himself for another fight with a customer. That wasn't the first time someone showed up after closing hours without a care and too much entitlement and he was not having it today. A sigh escaped his lips and he turned around. A guy had come inside. He was standing next to the register in a black sweater with the hood pulled over his head, almost completely hiding his face. He was soaking wet from the rain, even his jeans were wet and dirty and at first he thought it was a bum looking for warmth.

“Look dude, I don't have time for this shit, I gotta bounce.”, Hidan said and gestured him to get out with his free hand, “Just leave, man.”

When the guy didn't move an inch he let out another groan and walked up to him, cursing under his breath because the freshly mopped floor was getting dirty again.

“Hey, are you fucking deaf?”, he growled, “What the hell do you-”

But then the guy pulled his hood back and his breath got stuck in his throat. His jaw dropped and he didn't even notice he let go of the mop. The sound of it falling to the ground echoed through the room.

“Sasori? What in the ever living fuck are you doing here?!”

Sasori wiped the wetness from his face and nervously glanced around. Small droplets of water dripped from his hair to the ground as he glanced up to him, biting his lip.

“Hey.”, he hoarsely said.

“Hey? Fucking hey yourself! What are you doing here? What happened?”

Hidan shook his head in disbelief, wondering if he was high and hallucinating. He did spend a lot of time in the room where they stored all the paints and colors...

“Calm down. Everything's fine.”

“Fucking hell, dude. I knew Deidara had his panties in a twist for nothing. He's worried sick, by the way. Your dumb school called the police this morning. What the hell have you been up to?”

He was secretly shocked by the amount of relief flooding his body. Had he really been that worried himself, too? He picked up the mop and mustered Sasori from head to toe. He was wet, pale and obviously shivering from the cold. His bottom lip was a little dark and bruised, like he'd been biting on it too hard and he had deep, dark circles under his eyes.

“...Are you alright?”, he carefully asked, “Did something...happen?”

“No. Yeah. I'm...fine.”

“What are you doing here, then? Look, you gotta get back to campus. Why didn't you tell them anything? The fucking cops are probably already looking for you.”

Sasori swallowed hard.

“I know, I know. I just...”, he exhaled tiredly and ran a hand across his face with shaky fingers, “I-...I'm...”

“Alright, it's cool. Take a breather.”, Hidan said and scratched the back of his head. He didn't mean to push too hard but he was both shocked and intrigued.

“I'm almost finished here. I wanted to visit Deidara after work anyway so I can take you with me. You want coffee or something?”

Sasori didn't respond. He toyed with the string of his hoodie and started biting his lip again. Hidan rolled his eyes and took that as a yes. He locked the door and went to the break room where he offered him a chair and punched a button on the coffee machine. It came to life with a low hum and gurgled the black liquid into the glass pot while he searched the cupboard for a clean mug.

“I almost got a fucking heart attack when Deidara told me you went missing this morning.”, he jokingly said in an attempt to lighten the mood, “Really thought you were a goner. Already prepared a funeral speech and all.”

Sasori remained silent but the faint of a smile ghosted over his lips.

“...It was probably still better than work I guess.”, he eventually murmured. Hidan let out a snort.

“Damn right it was. And not nearly as depressing.”

Sasori gave him another small smile before glancing back down on the floor. Something was definitely up but Hidan decided against pressuring him. He leaned against the counter and crossed his arms, briefly looking out the window. It was getting dark, the sun had already set and the rain was still endlessly pouring from the sky. The sound of droplets hitting the window mixed with the gurgle of the coffee machine. The radio host chimed in when they both didn't know what else to say and started listing the top 10 holiday destinations from some survey they've done. After a while the man stopped his endless yapping and put on a song and the voice of a woman softly singing to the tune of a guitar filled up the silence. The floor was full of water drops and Hidan realized they were coming from Sasori's wet clothes. He awkwardly scratched at the light stubble of his chin and asked:

“Hey, you wanna...change out of that?”

Sasori's head snapped up and he furrowed his brows.

“What do you mean?”

“I always keep a spare set of clothes in my locker.”, he explained, “One time my coworker Tobi, that fucking piece of shit, tried to eat paint and I had to chase him around the whole fucking store. He kept aiming at me with it and damn, that guy knows where to hit. I looked like a rainbow or something after that.”

“...You don't have to. It's okay. It'll dry eventually.”

“You sure? You seem...cold. Come on, dude. I'm not letting you in my car looking like a wet poodle.”

Sasori fumbled with a hole in his sleeve and shrugged, nodding his head.

“Alright then.”

Hidan opened his messy locker and searched through it. He found a gray T-shirt but it smelled terribly like sweat when he sniffed it and shoved it back with a disgusted face. Next were a pair of clean socks, black sweatpants and a dark-blue sweatshirt followed by lots of candy wrappers and empty cigarette packs. He put the clean clothes on the bench and called him into the locker room so he could get back to the makeshift kitchen and fill his mug. The smell of coffee and rain lingered in the air and he struggled to ignore some...mildly inappropriate thoughts. He questioned once more why the hell his brain acted up like that every time he was around him. Especially because he was usually more into girls anyway; he really needed to get laid again soon. Sakura still had his jacket...he wondered if she was single. But that thought flew straight out the window when Sasori returned to the kitchen. He was still wearing his jeans, the pants must've been too large for him after all, but the sweatshirt complimented his lean frame _very_ well albeit being a tad to big, too. He had to roll up the sleeves a bit and the color of his red hair stood in a nice contrast to the navy-blue. He looked downright adorable. Hidan swallowed hard and wordlessly handed over the mug, averting his gaze. Sasori sat back down on the chair and carefully nipped at his cup, fingers wrapped around the warm beverage.

“Thank you.”, he softly said.

“No big deal.”, Hidan answered with a shrug, “Look, I gotta finish up in here. I'll be back in a bit and we can leave.”

Sasori pressed his lips together and took a deep breath.

“About that...”

“What do you mean? Come on, it won't take long. My boss is gonna rip me a new one if it looks like shit in here tomorrow and-”

“I'm not coming back to campus with you. I can't.”

Hidan's eyes widened. He looked at him, dumbfounded. For a second he thought he didn't hear right.

“...What?”

“I'm leaving. I'm skipping town for a while.”

“Skipping town? What? Are you out of your fucking mind?!”

“You don't get it, I have to.”

“Well explain it to me then because damn right I don't get it!”

“It's none of your business. And it's...complicated. The less you know the better.”

“Are you shitting me?”

“No, I'm not.”

Hidan shook his head and scoffed. That guy was pulling his leg, there was no other explanation. That or he'd gone completely off the deep end.

“What, did you kill that tour guide after all? Last time I checked you wanted me in on that. What a bummer.”

Sasori nipped at his coffee and let out a humorless chuckle.

“You really have no idea what's going on, have you? I guess it's better that way.”

“No, I don't. Did you hit your head or something?”

“Listen, I'm getting out of town for a while. It's urgent and I need you to do me a favor.”

“...You're serious.”, Hidan said when it dawned on him.

“Obviously.”

“Shit, alright, hold on...where are you going? Are you gonna be back?”

“I can't tell you.”

“What about your college? And Deidara, and the fucking cops? What are you going to tell them?”

“Nothing. And you won't tell them anything, either.”

Sasori put down his cup and slowly rose from the chair, walking up to him.

“You can't tell anyone that you saw me today. Anyone.”

“What? What about the police?”

“Especially the police. You have to keep quiet, no matter what. Nobody can know that I've been here.”

Hidan looked into his brown eyes, hoping to find a small hint that he was messing with him after all. But they were brutally sincere.

“Please, Hidan. Don't tell anyone. Promise me.”

His heart fluttered when he said his name. He cursed. This couldn't be real. He started thinking that it was himself who hit his head.

“...Okay. Fine.”, he hesitantly murmured after a while, “I'll do it. I'll keep quiet. Promise.”

Sasori immediately let out a sigh of relief and ran a hand over his face.

“Thank God.”, he breathed.

“But under one condition. You have to tell me what happened. Or when you're coming back at least.”

“No. I can't do that.”

“Why not?!”

“Because-”

Suddenly a car honk ripped them out of their conversation. Sasori was at the front door in no time, waving at an expensive looking car standing outside the store.

“What the fuck...?”, Hidan whispered as he grabbed the keys from his pocket.

“Dude, what the hell is going on? Who's that?”

“My ride.”

“And where's he taking you?”

“...I don't know yet.”

“You don't know? Wha-”

“I really have to go now.”, Sasori interrupted him and bit his bruised lip. He pushed the door open and was about to leave when Hidan grabbed him by the arm out of reflex.

“Hold on.”, he said, “You're not wrapped up in something...dangerous, are you?”

Sasori didn't answer the question, his glance focused on his wet shoes.

“I...have to leave. Thank you...for everything. I'll return your clothes as soon as possible.”

And with that he freed himself from his grip and jogged over to the car. He threw a last, short look his way before disappearing inside on the front seat and Hidan couldn't do anything but watch the vehicle drive off into the night. His phone vibrated and he absently fished it out. Deidara had texted back, asking what was taking him so long. He ran a hand across his face.

“Shit.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! I'm updating one day early because of personal stuff. ^.^  
> I hope you enjoy the new chapter! I worked really hard and I've had a lot of fun writing it. I apologize in advance for any mistakes or things like that, I don't have a beta reader and English is not my first language. If there are any grammar mistakes feel free to tell me if you want.  
> I'm also very proud of myself. I've been sticking to my scedule and it did wonders for me! I hope it's okay that I only upload every second week. I can try and do weekly updates if you want.  
> Anyway, thank you so much for everyone who's been reading this and sticking around. Means a lot! <3  
> See you in two weeks! Lots of love,  
> Rose  
> xoxo


	4. Chapter 4

_Thursday, June 7 th 2018, present day_

“...So you guys were interrogated by the police again?”

“Yeah. Earlier this morning.”

“Did they find out something new? Did they tell you anything?”

“No, not really.”, Deidara murmured while he shoved a couple of fries in his mouth. “They don't have any clues either. They didn't say that but it was pretty obvious.”

“I can't believe nobody knows or at least saw anything. You might think it's unrealistic and yet here we are.”

Kisame grabbed a few tissues from the greasy paper bag and wiped his sauce-covered mouth with them. The burger in his hand was falling apart already and he wasn't even halfway through with it. The bag loudly crinkled as he mushed it together and threw it on the seat next to him.

“Right, Hidan?”

“...What? Oh, yeah. Right.”

Hidan absently nodded in agreement and put his food back in his bag. He wasn't hungry any more for some reason, even though it was him who requested to stop and grab food on their way home. He took a sip from his coke, toying with the straw with his teeth and the ice cubes inside the cup clinked against each other.

“What's wrong with you?”, Deidara asked with an annoyed frown, “You've been like this the entire day. Please don't tell me it's because of Ino again.”

He rolled his eyes.

“No, why the fuck would it be? We've just been driving around and hanging up those stupid missing-posters for fucking hours. I'm tired, man.”

“Well we're taking a break now, aren't we?”, Deidara retorted and dipped another fry in the ketchup cup on his lap. “I thought you'd care a bit more about finding Sasori after that little date you two went on.”

“ _You_ were supposed to go with him, dickhead! And it wasn't- it wasn't a date, all right?!”

“Okay okay, calm down. No need to get defensive. Why are you getting so flustered anyway?”

Deidara poked him in the cheek.

“How adorable, your face's getting all red!”

“Fuck off, dude. Go suck a cock or something.”, Hidan grunted and pushed his hand away.

“Don't worry, your little secret's safe with us.”, Kisame jokingly added and flashed him a shit-eating grin which was returned by a middle finger.

“Very fucking funny. You're the one with the boyfriend here.”

“Hey, at least I'm open about it.”

“While you guys are busy with your gay talk I'll go ahead and throw all this crap in the garbage.”, Deidara announced and grabbed the empty food containers before climbing out of the car.

“Hurry the hell up, I wanna go home already. It's late.”

“Oh boo-hoo. Why are you always such a baby, Hidan?”

“I have an early shift in 6 hours you dick!”

Kisame just cackled in the back seat and shook his head. It was dark outside. The clock showed almost 2 am and the gas station parking lot was completely empty. The lights from the logo bathed everything in a soft hue of green and the scream of a raven echoed through the night somewhere in the dark forest.

“Are you really okay?”

Hidan turned around and furrowed his brows in confusion. He was still busy wiping the sticky sauce from his fingers with another used tissue. He cursed under his breath when small crumbles of the material fell on his legs and he brushed them off onto the (already pretty dirty so it didn't really matter) floor.

“Yeah, sure. Just not very excited about work. Why do you ask?”

Kisame shrugged and scratched at the stubble of his chin.

“It's okay if you're upset, you know. We all are. It's not every day that one of your friends goes missing.”

“Upset? What the fuck are you talking about? I'm fine.”

“Well, I'm not.”, Kisame stated, “I'm...really worried. And you barely said anything the whole time. It's unlike you.”

“So what? I'm just-...just busy with personal stuff.”

Kisame sighed and shoved his hands into his college jacket, leaning his head back and staring at the ceiling.

“I just hope he's alright. And that he'll be back soon and everything goes back to normal.”

“Yeah, me too.”

“Do you think...something happened to him?”

Hidan wasn't prepared for that question. Judging from what happened a few days ago he knew that Sasori was at least still alive. Probably. But other than that, he knew nothing. He bit his lip.

“...Honestly, I'm not sure.”, he finally said, “And I don't wanna think about it.”

“Yeah.”, Kisame agreed, “Me too.”

He pondered if he should tell him what happened. He knew made a promise to keep quiet but the secret was starting to weigh down on him already. The stupid cops could suck it, he didn't regret not telling them anything but he did feel guilty towards his friends. Especially Deidara. Sasori had been one of the closest people in his life for years and he couldn't imagine how he felt with him being gone now. He typically never let it show when something serious really upset him but Hidan could tell just by his behavior that he wasn't alright. The hundreds of copies of posters he organized with his uncle indicated it.

“Hey, can I tell you something?”, he asked and turned around in his seat. Kisame looked up from his phone and leaned forward.

“Sure. What's up?”

Hidan mentally prepared himself, taking a deep breath. He still wasn't sure if he should do it. But maybe he'd feel a little better and less conflicted after talking to someone.

“But it has to stay between us. Not a word to anyone.”, he warned. Kisame furrowed his brows and put his phone away.

“...Okay? I won't tell anyone. What's going on, dude?”

“Alright. It's about...”, he hesitated, “It's about...”

He groaned and ran a hand across his face. He couldn't do it. His conscience of all things was stopping him.

“I think I know what's going on.”, Kisame said reassuringly and patted his shoulder.

“Wait. You do?”

“Yeah. You're trying to tell me that you're pretty beat up about everything after all. Am I right?”

Hidan bit the inside of his cheek and nodded.

“...I guess.”

“Look, it's alright. I know you suck at this touchy-feely stuff. Did you know that they offer counselors for people in situations like this? I think it's even covered by insurance. Depends. I actually know someone who-”

“Now hold on a minute dude, it's not that bad.”, Hidan interrupted him. That conversation was indeed getting way too close to the feelings department.

“I don't need a fucking counselor.”

“Well fine, suit yourself then.”, Kisame leaned back and crossed his arms, “But if you need someone to talk, you can come to me. I hope you know that.”

Hidan felt a fond smile creeping up on his face and he nodded, letting out a sigh.

“Yeah, I know. Thanks, man. You're the best.”

“Anytime.”

“Talk about what?”, Deidara suddenly asked as he opened the door.

“Holy shit dude, you almost gave me a heart attack! Were you eavesdropping again you fucking cunt?”

“ Yeah, same here. What took you so long?”, Kisame asked and laughed at Hidan who spilled cola all over himself because of the shock.

“It's your fault if you leave the windows open. And I had to take a leak.”, Deidara answered with a grunt while he fiddled with his seat belt.

“What are you waiting for, slowpoke? Start the car already and let's go home.”

“Can't you see I'm busy here?!”, Hidan snapped, “You made me spill my drink. Damn it, it's all over my pants for fuck's sake...”

“It'll dry. It's just liquid.”

“Thanks for the insight, genius.”

Deidara scoffed.

“Come on, it's not that much, it's fine. Start the car. I need my sleep, I have classes tomorrow.”

“Fuckin- alright fine, your highness.”

Hidan wiped at his clothes once more and then powered up the engine while throwing his friend a glare, maneuvering them back on the road. Deidara and Kisame started talking about college stuff at some point and he was glad that he didn't have to contribute anything for a while. He shoved a cigarette in his mouth and brought the lighter to the tip with his free hand, resting his arm on the open window. The wind fluttered against him and he slightly shivered in his T-shirt while he absently listened to the radio, his friends discussing midterms in the background. The street lamps disappeared when they left the city. It was complete darkness from then on, with only the car's headlights providing any sight. Small particles of mist danced in front of the windshield and steam was rising up from the wet asphalt. The corn fields were covered with fog, making everything appear a little creepy and mysterious. By the time they dropped Kisame off at his college he couldn't suppress his yawns anymore and tiredly wiped at his wet eyes while he waved his friend goodbye. Next stop was at Deidara's campus who was let inside the dorms by one of his peers. He watched him jogging up to the door and throwing him a short nod before disappearing inside the building. Hidan returned it and started the car, looking around the parking lot one more time. It was quiet, with only a few insects chirping every once in a while. He was lost in thought for a while. Then he let out a low huff and steered back on the street.

*

Work was a nightmare just like he predicted. Not only because of the customers or his boss who was nursing a giant hangover and let his bad mood out on everyone around him. But also because he had to put up with both Obito _and_ Tobi today. One twin was worse enough to deal with but two of them at the same time? It completely surpassed his amount of patience. And he didn't have much of it to begin with. It was like life was mocking him. He was constantly either listening to Obito's sob story about how his girlfriend broke up with him again for the 5th time or cleaning up another mess Tobi was responsible for; this time it was the coffee pot he'd dropped on the floor before running off to the bathroom to hide.

“Tobi! Get the fuck out of there and clean it up!”, Hidan barked and slammed his fist against the door repeatedly, anger and frustration boiling in his chest. His hand was already starting to hurt but he didn't care.

“Tobi didn't do it!”, he chirped from inside, “Tobi is a good boy!”

“I don't give a fuck! Unlock the door and come out or I'll rip you a new one you turd!”

“But it wasn't me!”

“Who the hell was it then? Santa Claus?”

“...Maybe?”

“If you don't come out right now I'll stick your fucking head in the toilet, you hear me?! I'm not gonna clean up your shit, I don't have time!”

“No!”, Tobi whined loudly, “Pwease don't huwt Tobi! He didn't do awything wwong!”

“I'm going to kill you right then and there, I swear.”

Hidan let out a frustrated sigh and took a step back, pinching the bridge of his nose. His heart was pounding in his chest from the adrenaline and he felt the urge to punch something, preferably his co-worker. He knew that guy wasn't being serious, he was just trying to get a rise out of him. Successfully.

“Tobi, come the fuck on, stop acting like a child all the time.”, he tried but already knew his attempts were futile. He waited a couple more minutes in front of the bathroom, knocking against the door now with less brute, but was ignored. He gave in after that and decided to just let him be since some customers were starting to give him weird looks. He begrudgingly returned to the break room and mustered the mess on the floor. Shards of glass were scattered everywhere across the linoleum and everything was covered with coffee splashes. It looked like somebody had diarrhea'd all over the kitchen. The pot just _had_ to be completely filled. He groaned, hoping that Obito wouldn't get a nervous breakdown handling the front on his own while he'd go out for a smoke break. Heaven knew he needed it now. He kicked a few glass shards out of harm's way and grabbed his cigarettes from his jacket, already on his way outside when suddenly his boss came in and almost ran into him.

“Oh, Hidan. Are you done with the- sweet tits on a stick, _again_?!”, Jiraiya exclaimed when he saw the broken pot, “What the hell happened here?! Who did that?”

“Don't look at me, Tobi dropped the fucking thing.”

“I don't care who it was! You're in charge here when Konan's not around. Goddamn it, I just wanted some coffee. I can't believe I cannot leave 3 grown men alone for more than five minutes.”

Hidan rolled his eyes while trying to keep his breath low. His boss smelled like he fell into a distillery and then a bucket of vomit. The usual pungent cologne wasn't helping.

“What are you standing around for anyway? Clean it up before someone gets hurt!”

“Yeah I will, just going for a smoke break first real quick.”

“Smoke break? Are you kidding me?”, Jiraiya shook his head and put his hands on his hips, bowing down so he could get a better look of where the coffee had spilled.

“Fucking hell, it's all under the counter.”

“Calm down. I'll take care of it.”

“Well you better hurry up before it dries and gets all disgusting and sticky. Oh, and by the way.”, Jiraiya put his hand into the pockets of his Khaki shorts and shoved a few coins in his palm.

“Here. That should cover it. You wanted a smoke break, right? Go ahead then and buy me a coffee when you're done here. Got it?”

He scoffed.

“Seriously now?! Do I look like a fucking maid or something?”

“Do _I_ look like I'm kidding? Yes, seriously. Now get going or you're fired.”

And with that his boss stomped back upstairs, muttering under his breath.

“Dick.”, Hidan murmured and sighed exasperatedly. He never wanted anything more than to quit his job at that very moment. Where was Konan when he needed her? She was the only one who was able to deal with her dad when he got like that. He grabbed the cleaning utensils and took care of the mess. Afterwards he unwillingly put on his jacket to go get Jiraiya's order. He wanted to ask Obito to take care of the register while he was gone but after he saw him openly crying with snot running down his face while packing up a customer's purchase he decided not to bother. It wasn't like this was the first time. That guy would figure it out somehow. Maybe.

After getting the coffee for his boss (and a soda can for himself) he slowly made his way back to work, dreading the hours that still laid ahead of him. It was only 10:15 and he wouldn't be done with his shift until at least 2 in the afternoon, depending on how may customers they'd have and if Tobi was going to come out of the bathroom or not. He was still inside last time he checked.

It was a hot, sunny day and he regretted putting on the jacket. The sun was beaming down mercilessly and the air felt so dusty and dry he could almost taste it. It carried the smell of fumes from traffic and the kebab stand down the street. It was crowded, everyone was out and about since the weather had turned over for the better and he had to make way for people on their stupid bikes way too often. He was surprisingly relieved when he made it back to the store. He threw his cigarette butt on the ground and the empty soda can in the trash before walking in, going upstairs to bring his boss his coffee and then returning to the register.

“You gotta stop crying like a pussy. You're scaring off the customers.”, he said to Obito who was wiping his face with a wet tissue, “Get a hold of yourself, man.”

“I...I know.”, Obito said and sniffled, loudly blowing his nose. “I just miss her so much. She's-”

“Just try and focus on work or something for now, alright? Jiraiya is off the shits today, he's pissed at me because of your dumb brother.”

Hidan leaned his hands against the counter and sighed. Maybe that man was right after all, maybe this place _was_ turning into a zoo.

“I heard something crash earlier. Was that him?”

“Yeah, he dropped the coffee pot again. Anyway, I have to take inventory in the back. Can you get your shit together for a few more hours?”

“...Yes. Sorry. I'm just-”

“Alright, great, good luck out here.”

Hidan quickly turned around and left; and almost ran into a customer.

“Oh. It's you.”, Ino said.

She was mustering him from head to toe with a displeased look on her face, casually throwing her hair back and crossing her arms. She was wearing her favorite purple skirt, he recognized it right away, and a simple black sports top with neon green stripes on it.

“So. How's it going?”

“...You've got to be fucking kidding me.”, he murmured under his breath and rolled his eyes. That made it official. Life was really, truly mocking him and that bitch was enjoying every single second of it. There were lots of different colorful phrases he'd like to spit at Ino right now but he stopped himself in the very last second and gave her a curt nod instead.

“I don't have time for chit-chat.”, he said and walked past her, heading for the back.

“Hold up!”, she called out, “I'm a customer in need of a sales associate. I'm looking to by a gift for my mother for her birthday.”

_Like I give a fuck_ , he thought to himself.

“I'll send someone over in a minute.”, he threw over his shoulder and kept walking. Hopefully Tobi was done being an immature brat so he could take care of that. But of course that guy was nowhere to be seen and the door to the bathroom was still locked. Knocking and calling his name didn't help, either. He probably fell asleep again.

“Obito, can you go and help her, please?”, he whispered to his his co-worker afterwards, “I can't deal with this shit today.”

“S-sure. Who is that, by the way?”

“That's my ex.”, he explained, “She needs help with a present or something like that. I'll handle the register in the meanwhile. Alright?”

Obito looked at Ino who was browsing the aisles with her arms still crossed, giving them an impatient look from time to time.

“Oh. Your ex...”, his co-worker said, lost in thought,“That makes us 2 now, doesn't it? You and her... and me and-”

He couldn't finish the sentence and started sobbing again. A customer saw it and put his stuff back and left the store. Hidan ran a hand across his face. This was going great.

“Fine. Just stay here then. And clean your face, you look ridiculous.”

He let out a deep sigh and mentally prepared himself. That only left him with one option. He shoved his hands in his pockets and begrudgingly walked over to Ino who was kneeling down, looking at silk painting sets.

“How can I help you?”, he asked in monotone.

“Finally.”, Ino said and stood up, “Your customer service is as terrible as ever.”

“You can send in a formal complaint if you want. Not that we give a shit, but...you know.”

Ino let out a humorless laugh.

“Still always the comedian, huh?”

“Look, just tell me what you need so we can get this over with.”

“It's my mom's birthday next week. She wants to start painting. Anything you can recommend?”

“I don't know. Let her try watercolors. They're easy to use.”

“Oh, so my mother's an idiot now?”

Hidan quietly groaned.

“You know I didn't fucking mean it like that. Don't turn this around on me. I don't know shit about painting.”

“That's great if you work at an art supply store.”

“I know, right? Anything else you need help with? Otherwise I'll be on my way. I got shit to do.”

Ino shook her head.

“You haven't changed a bit, have you.”, the way she said it sounded more like a statement than a question. “Fine. Forget it. I'll take care of it myself.”

“Then why did you ask for help in the first place?!”

“Well I thought you wouldn't be acting like a complete dick for once so we could talk. But I guess I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up when I saw you.”

“Talk?”, he almost laughed, “Talk about what? The part where you cheated on me or the part where I found out?”

“...Guys?”, Obito suddenly called out from the front. Both their heads snapped up.

“You're being pretty loud over there...”

“Sorry.”, Ino said to him and turned back around.

“Listen, I'm being serious.”, she said in a lower volume, “There's something I have to ask you. Are you free after work?”

“No. I don't wanna talk to you after work.”

“You're doing it right now so what's the big difference?”

Hidan exhaled through his nose. He scratched at his freshly shaved chin and thought about it.

“...Will it get you off my back for now?”, he finally asked.

Ino just raised her eyebrows and waited for his response.

“Okay.”, he agreed, “I'll be done at 3. Meet me in the parking lot.”

“Great.”, Ino said and and gave him a cold smile, “Now if you'll excuse me, I have to find a present for my mom.”

She simply turned away and left him standing there. Relief flooded him when he was finally alone in the back and he ran a hand trough his hair, mind still jumbled up from the conversation. He wondered what she wanted. He grabbed the inventory list and decided he'd cross the bridge when he'd get there, busying himself with sorting brushes, paints and paper for now.

*

“Alright. So listen up.”

Ino crossed her legs and took a sip from her drink through her straw.

“Why did we have to come here? Couldn't you just tell me what you want right at the parking lot?”

They were sitting at a small table in the corner of some bar. Hidan didn't know the place, it was a bit out of town and he couldn't believe he let himself get convinced to come here at all. The lighting was dim and a stuffed deer head hung over the entrance. An old, gritty country song was coming from the speakers and it was moderately visited, most guests being lonely alcoholics. He nipped at his beer bottle and pulled a face at the weird taste. Not terrible, but also not exactly his favorite. Alcohol-free, though. No drinking and driving for this guy. He learned well from his mother and her multiple DUIs.

“I'm going to be straight here.”, Ino said, “I told you about my mom's birthday, right? My family is having a barbecue next weekend. A lot of people are coming and...”, she sighed and twisted a few strands of hair around her finger. “I was asked to invite my boyfriend.”

“So? What does that have to do with me? I'm not your boyfrie- hold on. Don't tell me you haven't told your parents that we've broken up.”

“Well unfortunately, that's exactly what happened.”

“Why? I know your parents can be a pain in the ass when it comes to that. But you should've said that you're single now at least.”

“I'm not exactly single either...but that's none of your business.”

Ino poked around in her drink with her straw and gave him an expecting look.

“I think you know where I'm getting at. I need you to come to the barbecue with me next weekend.”

He put his bottle down and crossed his arms.

“No way.”

“Why not? There's gonna be free food and you only have to stick around for a few hours. Smile, play pretend, shake a few hands...you know the drill by now. You've done it for almost 4 years, you can do it one more time.”

“Ino, I'm not fucking faking a relationship in front of your parents' eyes. They're not stupid, they're gonna notice.”

“Not if we do it right.”

“What's in it for me?”, Hidan asked warily, “It's not like I'm gaining anything out of this. And I'm not doing charity work for you.”

“Sakura is going to be there, too.”

“...Really?”

“Yes. She's part of the catering team. I already told her that maybe you'll drop by.”

Ino leaned her head on her palm and added with a grin:

“She seemed pretty excited.”

Hidan considered his options. The thought of seeing her again actually made him pretty excited as well. She still had his jacket.

“Why don't you just tell your parents I can't come?”, he asked, “Tell them I have to, I don't know, fix the brakes on my car or something. And how'd you know about me and Sakura? I mean, not that there's anything to _know_ but-”

“I saw you two at the party. Hidan, please. Don't be an asshole for once and do this for me.”, she said and he could practically tell how hard it was for her to actually beg him, “It's on Saturday. Do this one last thing for me and I promise I'm never gonna ask you for anything again.”

He let out a sigh and sipped on his beer, buying some time to think. His thoughts were all scattered in his brain and he struggled to come to a conclusion because his feelings got in the way. He felt deep resent for Ino and what happened between them, but he'd been still in love with her when everything went down the drain...and if he was honest with himself, he still kind of loved her a little.

“...I don't know.”, he muttered, “Sorry Ino, but I don't think I can do this.”

“Are you sure? See it as your chance to strike with Sakura. And also...”, she gave him a secretive look, “I may or may not have some information you'd be interested in.”

He furrowed his brows.

“Oh, yeah? What information?”

“I'm not telling. Yet. Come to the party first, you'll find out.”

She opened her purse and pulled a small, white piece of paper out.

“This is the invite.”, she explained and pushed it over to him with a well-manicured finger.

“Just think about it. You don't have to say yes right away.”

He took the card and mustered it. The first word was “Invitation” written in fancy italic letters with a glittery silver ink. Inside were a few words from the hosts with the designated date and time at the end.

“Fine.”

“You'll come?”

“...I'll think about it.”

Hidan put the card in his pocket, a bad feeling sitting in his stomach. Him and Ino finished their drinks before each one went their separate way. He was surprised by how much they actually talked to each other and a foolish part of him even let hope sprout in his heart. It was small and fickle but he already knew it could get him into trouble. When he drove home he hoped that at least that was it. He had a shitty day at work, followed by a shitty talk with his ex who wanted to fucking exploit him for personal gain and his car had started acting up again for some reason. When he arrived home he wanted nothing more than to take a shower and throw on the TV, or maybe even take a nap but apparently life decided that that wasn't in for him this time. He noticed how someone was sitting on the doorsteps, surrounded by luggage. It was a woman. She was staring at her phone and her blonde hair slightly swayed in the wind. His stomach dropped. He slowly walked up to her and caught her in the middle of taking a deep drag from a cigarette.

“Mom? What the hell are you doing here?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey!  
> Sorry for the delay on this one. Thanks for the patience. I was enjoying my vacation and struggled with huge writer's block. I'm back on track now, yay! This chapter took me so long to squeeze out. Threee weeks. I don't know why, it's also not even that long, sorry. I'll try to write longer ones in the future but I cant promise anything. But I guess I have to if I want the plot to keep moving. Sorry that it's so short. I honestly don't know about this one, I feel like it's kinda...bad? It's the direction I'm aiming for but idk...I guess I'll figure it out. Thanks for reading and the kudos!  
> See you next time, xoxo <3


	5. Chapter 5

_Saturday, June 16 th 2018_

Ino's parents had never really accepted him. His cheap clothes and worn-out sneakers were proof that he wasn't fit to be part of their world. And they made sure he knew that the first time they met him, throwing him subtle condescending looks across the dinner table. He didn't think much of it at first, really; even though it did secretly sting a little. But Ino had warned him, especially about her mother. Both the older woman and the stupidly expensive jewelry around her neck widened their eyes in shock when he grabbed the apparently wrong kind of fork to eat the pathetically small portion of salmon on his plate. He had to hold himself back from provoking her any further, pulling himself together for Ino. She was the one he wanted to impress back then. Especially because there wasn't exactly much else he had to offer. And Mrs. Yamanaka knew that. He told her which part of town he came from and he still remembered the way she silently judged him, struggling to respect her daughter's life choices. That's what she was also doing right now while he was awkwardly tugging at his way too tight white polo shirt, accidentally spilling champagne on himself in the process.

“Shit.”, he murmured and wiped at the liquid on his clothes. It left dark stains on his beige dress shorts and made it look like he'd just pissed himself.

“Do you need a napkin for that, dear?”, Ino's mother asked and gestured the butler to bring him one. He avoided her glance and focused on the green brooch on her neck instead. It was so polished that he could see his own reflection in it. She raised a brow at him and he quickly turned his head and took a sip from his crystal glass. Maybe not the best place to look at.

“Here you go, Sir.”, the butler said, offering him one of those expensive napkins with the heavy material.

“Thanks...”, Hidan said and took it from his old shaky hand, giving Ino's mother an awkward smile. It wasn't returned.

“You're welcome. Just try and be more careful next time.”

Ino was subtly facepalming next to him. He received a glare from her when Mrs. Yamanaka excused herself to greet some of her friends, her old-fashioned bordeaux-colored dress dancing around her ankles when she walked away.

“What do you want from me?”, Hidan hissed through gritted teeth, “You know I'm not good at this shit.”

“I just don't understand how you keep messing up even the most simple tasks.”

Ino emptied her glass and put it on the table they were standing at, crossing her arms.

“I get it, I'm asking for a lot here but could you at least try to be less clumsy?”

He put his glass down as well but with more force, the material making a dull _cling_ sound against the white decorative sheet. He huffed.

“Who gives a fuck?”, he asked, “They don't like me anyway. And it's not like it matters anymore.”

Ino didn't respond to that. Instead she grabbed her phone from her sparkly purse and started texting and he secretly knew he had won this round. _Hidan – 1_ , _Ino – 0._

It was late afternoon and they were standing in the huge, pompous dinner hall. It was filled with fancy birthday guests talking and laughing with each other as they stood around the tall tables. Butlers in fancy suits were serving drinks and complimentary snacks and some children in clothes probably worth more than his monthly wage were scurrying among the adult's feet, chasing each other with primal screams. Their high voices echoed loudly through the hall and some people threw them foul looks, obviously bothered by the noise. Smooth Jazz was playing in the background and mixed with the sound of rain coming from outside. The day had started out beautifully, with only a few clouds in the sky and a warm sun inviting to come out and enjoy the weather. It had tilted however somewhere along the way and the barbecue grill had to be hurried inside, along with some upset guests. Now it had become even more crowded and Hidan felt uncomfortable being around Ino's rich parents and their pretentious friends. _Just like old times_ , he thought to himself.

“Can I go home already? I've been here for hours. I think you've proven to your folks that we're still together so why can't I leave?”

“Soon, I promise. I need you just a little while longer. You know how upset my mom can get if someone leaves early.”

A sigh escaped Hidan's lips. He wouldn't think for a second that she'd be even the slightest bit of upset if he left but he reluctantly gave in.

“Alright, fine.”, he grunted, “But I'm telling you I'm not staying 'til midnight. I have shit to do.”

Ino raised her eyebrows.

“Really? Like what?”, she asked with fake surprise. Now it was his turn to shut up. _Ino – 1,_ _Hidan – 0_. He shrugged and scratched the back of his head.

“...You know. Stuff.”

She simply rolled her eyes at that and brushed through her ponytail with her long nails. She was wearing a beige three-piece suit with a pencil skirt matching the color of his shorts. She'd been the one who put the outfit together and ignored all his complaints when he told her that both items were too small for him. Now he was standing there, secretly tugging at his crotch with his free hand from time to time like an idiot. His other hand was trapped in a vice grip. Ino had been holding it almost the entire time now and the more he'd tried to wiggle out the tighter it made her hold on to him. His palm was already starting to feel gross and sweaty but her soft fingers against his own felt familiar and comforting. It grounded him in a way.

“Oh, please. Go talk to Sakura or something if you're so bored.”, Ino checked the rose-golden watch on her wrist, “She's on her break right now. Just be careful mom and dad won't see you.”

He rolled his eyes.

“I know, I know. But I just don't get it. Why do they have such a big problem with me talking to other girls? It's not like I'm dating them, I'm dating you- well, used to. And Sakura's just a friend.”, he gave her a confused look, “And how do you know when she's supposed to have her break anyways?”

“It's called being organized. I told you you'd get to spend time with her, didn't I?”

She put her phone away.

“I'm serious, no funny business. I have to use the bathroom so go ahead and take a break. Don't do anything stupid while I'm away, got it?”

Ino gave him a stern look with her bright, blue eyes. The decent amount of make-up she was wearing complimented her features and made her appear even more prettier, if that was even possible. His heart fluttered when she brushed her hand across his chest, flattening out some wrinkles on his shirt. Her palm was soft and warm and a whiff of her perfume traveled to his nose when she moved. Something painfully pulled at his heartstrings. After all this time it still felt like home.

“I'm not _that_ dumb.”, he murmured, avoiding eye-contact.

“And stay away from my father.”, she added, pointing a finger at him.

“Why? He's the one I actually get along with.”

“Just do what I say. Don't talk to him.”

“Jeez, okay. Fucking hell...”

His hand was released and he watched her disappear into the crowd. He wiped his damp hand on his shorts and decided it was time for a smoke. He made a beeline for the terrace, absently greeting a few people with a forced smile and walked outside. The rain had stopped but the air still smelled like it. Thick drops of water from the trees hammered on the glass roof and gray clouds were moving fast across the sky. It was colder now and a breeze swept across the back yard, making goosebumps immediately appear on his arms and legs. He found a relatively empty corner away from everyone else (this was the kind of party he wanted to be left alone at) and wondered where Sakura was while shoving a cigarette in his mouth. He hadn't seen her since he'd gotten here a few hours ago, and back then they were only able to exchange a quick smile before he was dragged away to greet some of Ino's relatives. They were nothing more but friends for now but he already figured how much he enjoyed talking to her over text; which they've been doing quite a bit since the night of the party.

He took a deep satisfying drag from his cigarette, lost in thought and didn't even notice when someone walked up behind him.

“Hidan! There you are.”, a familiar voice greeted, “I've been looking for you everywhere.”

His head snapped up in surprise and he internally cursed. Crap. Just the person he was looking for.

“Hey, Mr. Yamanaka...”, he greeted lamely, “...Sorry about the smoke.”

“It's alright. Don't worry about it.”, Mr. Yamanaka reassured with a friendly smile and flashed a small golden metal case, taking one out as well.

“You wouldn't tell my wife, would you?”, he asked with a grin and Hidan shook his head.

“I won't tell if you won't tell.”

“Perfect.”

Ino's father crossed his arms with a content laugh and blew a trail of smoke in the air. He was slightly swaying and his strong whiskey breath told that he already had a few. Maybe more than a few. He was dressed in one of his favorite, extravagant suits and his brown leather shoes put everyone else's to shame. His tie was loose and hanging freely around his neck, the white button-up revealing a simple gold chain with a tiny locket on it.

“So, how have you been? I haven't seen you around in a while.”, he asked.

“I'm alright.”, Hidan responded casually, “Work's been a pain in the ass like always. But everything's cool otherwise.”

“Same old, same old, eh?”

“Pretty much.”

Mr. Yamanaka nodded with a chuckle, giving a small wave to another guest.

“Have you ever thought about doing something else?”

Hidan scratched the back of his head.

“Actually yeah, I have. I want to quit at my old place sometime soon and maybe...I don't know, go to a bigger chain somewhere or-”

“No, I meant something besides retail.”

“...Not really.”, he answered hesitantly. He wasn't sure what Ino's father was implying with that.

“It's the only thing I learned how to do after school.”

“Well, it doesn't have to be.”

“What do you mean?”

Mr. Yamanaka put his cigarette down and looked at him, putting a hand on his shoulder.

“Look, kid.”, he said, “I've...been thinking. I know that me and Ayako haven't been exactly...welcoming towards you in the past few years. I only wanted what's best for my daughter, I'm sure you can understand that. And honestly, I never would've thought that you two would stay together for so long in the first place.”

He flashed him another smile.

“But when I saw you two today I knew that she already has what's best for her. And I admire how you keep showing up here despite our differences. I know you're doing it for her. That's true love."

Hidan bit his lip. Whatever that guy was ramping up to, it didn't sound good.

“Well...”, he said with a shrug, “I can't help it I guess. Anything for her.”

“And that's why I want to apologize for our behavior. And in behalf of my wife. Trust me, she feels the same way even though she doesn't show it.”

“It's...fine, Mr. Yamanaka-”

“Please, call me Inoichi.”

“...Inoichi. It's okay, really. No big deal. I get it.”

He wondered how much of that was just the liquor talking. Couldn't he have told him that a few months ago? But then again, would it have made any difference? He returned Mr. Yamanaka's warm smile with an awkward one and hoped to God that Ino would show up soon and save him from this fresh hell.

“No, no. Let me make it up to you. It's only fair. I have an offer for you.”

“An offer?”

“Yes.”, Ino's father took another drag from his cigarette, “I want to give you a job at my company.”

“...What?”

Hidan's eyes widened. Shit. So that's what he's been warned about. He shook his head.

“That's alright, you don't have to do tha-”

“Oh, I think I do.”, Mr. Yamanaka said while toying with his chain, “I have this guy working for me. Honestly he's kind of a drag, I've been meaning to fire him for a while now. But I don't have anyone to replace the position. Yet.”

He grinned in a smug manner.

“Just say the word and the job is yours. You can start working there as soon as possible. I can offer you vacation allowance, sick leave, insurance, reasonable hours...and I'd certainly pay you more. Basically anything you want, we can work it out. And the best part is: You can work side by side with Ino when she takes over one day.”

Mr. Yamanaka patted him harshly on the back.

“How does that sound, boy?”

Hidan bit his lip. He wasn't able to come up with a clever excuse so quickly.

“I'm not sure...”, he said vaguely, “I don't think that's the direction I wanna go in...can't say I'd be such a great help. I don't know shit about that stuff.”

“Nonsense, Hidan! Any idiot can do it. It's a simple corner office job. Safe, well-paid and you don't even have to do that much. My men will teach you anything you need to know. Trust me.”

Inoichi put his cigarette out and gave him an expecting look.

“So? What do you say?”

“...Can you really do something like that?”, he lamely asked instead of answering in order to keep the conversation going. It wasn't like he really had much of a choice and he'd come across like a dick if he declined the offer; but it would make things even more complicated if he accepted it.

“Can I do something like that? I'm the CEO! It's my company, I can do whatever I want.”, Mr. Yamanaka answered with a loud laugh, “My company is the leading one in hydroponics. No-one is bigger than us right now, I have my people working on new technology non-stop. You could be part of that, too. If you want.”

He took another cigarette out of his case, offering Hidan one as well but he hesitated to take it.

“And I know it would mean a lot to Ino, too.”, he added.

“...Look, Mr. Yam- Inoichi, you'd have to let me think about it. I need to talk to my boss first and everything...”

“What's there to talk about? Who do you work for again? That hippie, what's his name? Jiraiya?”

Mr. Yamanaka fished his phone out.

“I'll take care of it, don't worry. I'm calling my secretary right now.”

Hidan started sweating. He felt it running down his back and his heart was wildly beating in his chest. This could potentially blow his cover. No, this was _for sure_ going to blow his cover. He watched him dial up a number on his display and wanted to smack the device out of his hand. Jiraiya would be _pissed_. Not to mention Konan if she found out. And he wasn't actually planning on quitting his job then and there. Shit. He was in big trouble. Him and Ino both.

“You really don't need to be doing this for me...”, he said nervously but Ino's father stopped him with a move of his hand.

“Just a second there. Hello?...Yeah, it's me...Listen, I need you to take care of somethi-”

“Dad! There you are!”

He was flooded with relief when he saw Ino hurrying up to them in her tall high-heels.

“Oh, hey pumpkin.”, her father said, “I'm on the phone right now so could you-”

“What are you doing here? Mom's been looking for you like crazy! She's mad.”, Ino explained.

Mr. Yamanaka raised his eyebrows and cut the call.

“Really? Damn it, is it because of the barbecue meat? Because I told her that-”

“Just go to her, dad! You're only making it worse.”

He let out an exasperated sigh and put his phone back in his pocket.

“Sorry, buddy. We'll take care of this later, alright? I gotta go.”, he gave him a firm handshake, “It was good seeing you.”

The man vanished into the crowd soon after. Hidan ran a hand across his face shook his head.

“Holy shit. That was close.”, he breathed.

“You're lucky I saw you two on accident. What were you thinking? I told you to stay away from my dad.”, Ino said sternly.

“I'm sorry, okay? He just walked up to me out of nowhere, what was I supposed to do? Tell him to fuck off?”

“Of course not. But you should've been a little more careful. What did he say to you?”

“He wants me to fucking work for him. Ino, that's not gonna happen. He even tried to call my boss! You have to tell them the truth before I get fired.”

“I...I can't do that. Not right now anyway.”

“Then talk to him or something, I don't know! Why is it such a big deal anyway? Wouldn't they be happy to finally get rid of me?”

“You know how my parents are. Keeping up the facade is the most important thing to them, especially to my mom. Everyone they know is gonna gossip if they find out their daughter broke up with _another_ boyfriend. And they're going to be mad at me again.”

She let out a frustrated sigh and crossed her arms, looking down on the polished marble floor.

“You wouldn't understand, you don't know what it's like.”

Hidan put his smoke butt in the ash tray and sighed as well. Her family had always been a re-occurring topic in their relationship. But now that they weren't together he shouldn't be giving a damn about her problems anymore. But seeing her sad and troubled like that hurt him more than it should. He still felt anger and resentment for what happened but he also felt...love. He hated to admit it, but he still loved Ino in some way.

“Hey. Come on.”, he carefully put a hand on her arm, “It's gonna be alright. Your folks aren't the fucking boss of you. Screw them. What does it matter what some douches in ugly shorts think?”, he searched her glance, “Look, I'm sorry I fucked up. I didn't mean to. I'll...I'll stay put for a little bit longer if you want. Just don't leave me alone again.”

He grinned.

“Or I'll _really_ end up working for your dad. And we both know that's gonna be a fucking disaster.”

Ino looked up to him and laughed, subtly wiping at her mascara.

“...Alright.”, she hesitantly said with a small smile, “Okay.”

He ended up staying much longer than he'd originally planned after that. He wanted to be at the party for 2, maybe 3 hours tops but he didn't think about that anymore when him and Ino went back inside. They successfully managed to avoid her parents for the rest of the evening and even dropped by to say hello to Sakura in the kitchen. The birthday party diminished a bit around 8 o'clock after unwrapping the presents and the first guests started to excuse themselves and head home. Ino took his hand again at some point and this time it didn't feel uncomfortable at all, quite the contrary. She dragged him outside and they sat down on the curb a few houses further. The bushes from the neighbors hid them from people walking to their cars and they both laughed when an angry mother chased her bratty kid around the street.

“Thank you for doing this.”

Ino drank from the champagne bottle they were sharing after sneaking it out of the dinner hall. The sun was slowly setting behind them and it's orange glow poured itself over the sky. It was relatively quiet besides distant chatter and music coming from her house and for a faint moment the sound of an far-away ambulance passing by traveled through the neighborhood.

“No big deal.”, Hidan said with a shrug and took a swing as well. He wasn't planning on getting drunk but one or two sips wouldn't hurt. The champagne was disgustingly sweet and it's taste sat in his mouth for way too long. He took another swing, hoping to wash it down. It didn't work, obviously. Ino ran her fingers through her messy hair in an attempt to tame it and pulled out a small mirror afterwards, checking and retouching her makeup.

“Sorry you didn't get to spend time with Sakura after all. I didn't think the kitchen would be that busy.”, she said when she was done.

“It's cool.”

“Have you guys been on a date yet?”

“No, why? She's just a friend.”, he answered, ignoring her suggestive tone.

“...You've already thought about banging her, haven't you?”

“Oh, fuck off.”

Ino let out a snort and giggled. He hated how technically she wasn't wrong.

“We can both bang anyone we want now. Just saying.”

“Yeah.”, she murmured and sipped from the bottle, “I guess so.”

The thought of her sleeping with someone else shouldn't bother him. But it kinda did. It had also already happened. He bit his lip when a dull pain shot through his chest. No, he definitely wasn't over the cheating thing yet.

“This is weird.”, she said after a while of silence.

“What do you mean?”

“This. Us. Hanging around like that. We used to sneak away like that all the time. It's just like...old times.”

Hidan nodded in agreement with a lopsided grin.

“Yeah. It sure is.”

“Do you miss it sometimes?”, Ino asked quietly, “Do you...miss me sometimes?”

.He let out a low sigh, swinging the bottle around in his hand. The champagne inside licked against the see-through glass.

“Ino. You have no idea how much I fucking miss you sometimes.”

He looked at the orange sky and followed the moving clouds with his eyes. Birds flew in the distance, so far away they appeared like small, black dots. It had cleared up after the rain shower but it was still cold and a little wet. He felt the hairs on his arms stand up again and briefly brushed over them with his hand, grabbing a cigarette from his pocket. Ino didn't say anything. She simply took the champagne from him and took a few long gulps before putting it down on the asphalt.

_Why'd you do it?_ , he wanted to ask. He stayed silent. He didn't want to know why back then, he didn't want to know why now. He wasn't sure he could handle it.

He brought the cigarette to his lips to take a deep drag but Ino was quicker and snatched it from his hand, giving it a go before returning it with a cough.

“Hey! That's mine.”, he protested.

“You'll be fine. You smoke too much anyways.”, she retorted.

“I didn't know you did.”

“I don't.”

She pulled her legs closer to her frame and leaned her arms on her knees.

“Were you happy?”

She searched his glance but he avoided it, watching how the ashes from his smoke fell to the ground instead.

“See? You were unhappy, too. Just admit it.”

“...Yeah, maybe I was at the end.”, he scratched the back of his head, “Everything changed so much after you left for college and...”

“Did you want me to stay here with you?”

“Kinda. It's fucking hours away. I mean, I did want you to pursue your dreams, I know this whole thing with your dad's company is important to you. So I never held you back.”

“Sometimes I wish you did, though.”

He furrowed his brows.

“What do you mean?”

Ino rested her head on her palm.

“I don't want to be CEO. I don't want anything to do with the company. The longer I sit in those classes the more I realize it. I don't want to...be that. It's what my parents want me to be. But I can't do anything about it anymore. It's too late.”

“Too late? It's not too fucking late. You can-”

“No, I can't. That's the point. All the formalities are already done. I will be working with my dad as soon as I graduate.”

“Is there any way you can talk to them? Tell them you changed your mind?”

She shook her head.

“They'd be so disappointed.”

“So what? Fuck that.”

“It's not as easy as you think. It's complicated. And I don't wanna talk about it. It doesn't have anything to do with you anyway.”

They took another sip from the bottle, both pulling a face at the overly sweet taste.

“Well, you did your part so I'll do mine. You remember that info I mentioned you'd be interested in?”

Hidan's curiosity peaked up at that.

“Yeah, I do.”, he said. He'd completely forgotten that.

“Wait, you were serious?”

“Yup.”

“Alright. Shoot.”

Ino absently toyed with the bottle cap and gave him a more serious look.

“It's about Sasori.”

He was busy putting out his smoke on the ground and his head snapped up in surprise when he heard the name. He turned to her with a bewildered look on his face.

“...What?”

“My dad has a friend on the force. I overheard them talking on the phone. He's not directly involved with the case but he says there's something fishy going on.”

“Something fishy?”

“Yes. Some people have called who claimed to have seen him. Apparently he's hitchhiking to somewhere. But they're disregarding any clues they receive, it's like they're lazy or just don't care. Some papers have been mysteriously disappearing from his file as well. As if someone actively doesn't want him to be found. But that's not all.”

Hidan thought about the expensive looking vehicle he saw on that fateful evening when Sasori had stumbled into the store. Hitchhiking? That didn't add up. Maybe he managed to...escape? And who was that guy driving? He pressed his lips together into a thin line.

“They found his car a few days ago. It was hidden at one of those self-storage places pretty far out of town. The place is abandoned somewhere in the forest and the only reason they found out about it is because the forest ranger noticed car tracks on the ground.”

“Holy shit. Did you hear them say anything else? What about his parents or something?”

“That guy doesn't have any family or relatives as far as I've heard. Or at least they didn't mention them over the phone. And no, my dad caught me listening in.”

Hidan ran a hand across his face.

“Hold on. Why are you telling _me_ this?”

“I thought you might care.”, Ino said with a shrug.

“Yeah, but...you should've gone straight to Deidara with that or something. I don't know. It's not like I'm close to him or anything...”

“I don't know Deidara that well and I'm pretty sure he hates me.”

“Oh. Yeah, he kinda does.”

“That's why you were my next best choice. There isn't much I can do but I know maybe you guys can.”

“I'm not sure about that, though. Deidara, Kisame and I have been putting up missing-posters and all that shit. His uncle helped. But I don't think it's really doing anything.”

“I saw a couple of them. One is hanging on the blackboard in the entrance hall at my college.”

“Really? They made it that far?”

“Not sure who put it up but yeah. Do you have any idea where Sasori might've gone?”

He bit his lip and nervously kneaded his hands.

“...No idea.”

“Are you sure? He didn't say anything to you?”

“Why would he?”

“I saw you guys.”

Ino looked at him suspiciously and he furrowed his brows. She couldn't have saw them at work, could she? There hadn't been anyone else there. Or at least no one he noticed...

“I have no fucking idea what you're talking about.”, he murmured.

“Oh, you don't?”

“Nope.”

“Shame. And I thought that was you and him walking out of that museum. I guess I need new glasses then...”

“Y-you fucking saw us?!”, he stammered in shock, “How?!”

“I knew it! I knew it was you!”, Ino flashed him a shit-eating grin, “I was on a small business trip with my dad. He had to take care of something and I waited in the car. That's when I saw you two.”

“Look, it's- it's not what it fucking looked like, alright? It wasn't a date.”, Hidan said defensively, “I wasn't even supposed to be there. Him and Deidara wanted to go there and-”

“I never said it was.”

“What?”

“What?”

Ino laughed and he turned his head away in a futile attempt to hide the redness developing on his face. His cheeks felt warm and he didn't even understand why he got so flustered, it was no big deal after all.

“I'm just messing with you.”, she said.

“Whatever.”

Suddenly Ino stood up and huffed.

“It's getting cold. Mom's probably already looking for me so I should head back inside. You'll wait here for Sakura?”

Hidan got up as well with a nod and handed over the half-empty bottle to her.

“Thanks, Ino.”, he said, “For the info I mean. That actually helped. I'll tell Deidara as soon as possible.”

She took the bottle and brushed him off with a wave of her hand.

“Good luck with your search.”

“Yeah.”

The looked at each other one more time. Awkward silence sat between them and neither of them knew what to say. He gave her a curt nod as goodbye and watched her disappear behind the front door. It fell shut with a dull sound, only to be opened back up again right after. For a split second he thought – he _hoped_ – it was her. But it wasn't, it was a family with two of the screaming children from earlier. He walked back to his car and leaned against it, looking up at the sky again. The color had changed to a more darker, greener tone by now and he could see the first tiny white specks glistening above him. It was getting late. He wondered who Ino was dating right now.

*

He dropped off Sakura at the suburbs she lived in before finally heading home. The elevator in his apartment complex was out of order again and he had to take the stairs up to the 6th floor. The fluorescent lighting automatically flickered up, followed by a mechanical humming tone. An unpleasant smell hung in the hallway and he soon figured out why; someone had left their trash outside again. It was sitting next to the door, slowly decaying. He heard the faint sound of a TV and a baby crying but otherwise it was relatively calm. The married couple living next to him wasn't even fighting for once. Caricatures on dirty walls greeted him as he walked down the hallway, his footsteps echoing through the moderate silence on the naked floor. The window was tilted and an overfilled ashtray stood on the sill, with a cigarette butt still emitting a small trail of smoke. He fumbled his keys out and unlocked the last door on his right, walking in. A pungent smell of alcohol and dirty dishes hit his nose right away and he scrunched up his face in disgust.

“Welcome home, honey.”, his mother drunkenly chirped from the living room.

“...Hey, mom.”, he murmured and kicked his shoes off, intending to go to his room straight away.

“Are you hungry? There's some food left on the stove if you want.”

“No, thanks.”

He actually was a little hungry. But going to the kitchen right now would mean having to deal to her and he hated doing that when she was drunk. She'd been like that since the day she was kicked out of rehab and had spent the majority of her time laying on the couch in the living room with a blanket draped over her, watching the news.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah.”

“Why won't you come and talk to me? Are you angry? Did something happen?”, she whined and he heard shuffling, followed by the clattering of glass. He quietly groaned.

“I'm fine.”, he said after reluctantly trotting to the living room. His mother was sitting upright, cursing under her breath. She had spilled wine on the floor and a wet, dark stain had already developed on the carpet.

“Hidan, grab the paper roll please. I must've knocked the bottle over or something...”

“Mom, you gotta be more careful.”, he said with a sigh and brought the roll, helping her clean up the mess.

“Thanks, honey.”, she said afterwards and pressed a wet kiss on his forehead when he was still kneeling next to the couch. “What would I do without you?”

He rolled his eyes and went to the kitchen to throw the used papers into the garbage. Apparently his mother had followed him because she was standing in the door frame when he turned around, unsteady on her feet. She was still in her pajamas and morning robe and her messy hair hung freely in her face. She smelled horribly of liquor and was holding a half-full glass of red wine in her hand.

“Are you mad? Don't be mad at mommy. Here, let me warm up some spaghetti for you-”

“I said I'm not hungry.”, he snapped and immediately regretted it when he saw her hurt face.

“Look, I'm sorry mom. I don't need anything. I'm going to my room.”

He tried to push past her but she grabbed his arm.

“Where'd you get those clothes? They look nice.”

“They're not mine. Ino borrowed them to me. For the party, remember?”

“What party?”

“The one she invited me to. I told you.”

“Oh, that's right...”, she muttered absently, “I must've forgotten...”

“Yeah, big surprise.”

Her grip was tight so he wasn't able to free himself from it and he was scared to accidentally knock her over if he tried it with too much force.

“Mom I'm tried, I really wanna go to bed. We can talk tomorrow...”, he said exasperatedly.

“Now don't leave mommy all by herself just yet. Here, let me get dinner ready. Go sit on the couch meanwhile. Don't you want to spend time with me? I've been away for so long and we didn't have the time to properly reconnect yet.”

He hated how familiar it sounded when she slurred her words together. He sighed again and ran a hand across his face.

“Alright. Fine.”

“There we go. Watch some TV, this won't take long.”

He went to the living room and slumped down on the armchair. The news program running didn't interest him in the slightest so he grabbed the remote to switch channels, looking for nothing in particular when after a while all of a sudden the smoke detector in the kitchen went off.

“What the fuck?!”

He jumped up and ran over there, finding his mother swatting the device with a hand towel. She had burned dinner. The room was filled with gray smoke and he hurried to remove the sizzling pan from the stove and opened the window, tears burning in his eyes. The high-pitched sound of the smoke detector was ringing in his ears and he had to climb up on a chair and shut it off manually, all while cursing under his breath.

“Mom, what the hell were you doing?!”, he coughed afterwards.

“I don't know honey, I-I don't know what happened!”, she whined, “I was just heating up the food and then-”

She took a long gulp from her drink with shaky hands and tugged a few strands of hair behind her ears.

“It's alright, mom.”, he reassured with a sigh, “Go back to the couch. I'll clean up here.”

“No, let me help you-”

“It's fine, just...go.”

“Hey, I have an idea.”, she said with a shaky smile, “Let's order a pizza and watch some movies, you and me. How about that?”

“...Maybe tomorrow.”

“Why?”

“It's just...I'm not in the mood for movies. I wanna go to sleep.”, he bit his lip and scratched the back of his head, “Okay?”

His mom pressed her lips together into a thin line.

“Fine.”, she said and opened the fridge, grabbing another bottle of wine and opening it before pouring it into her empty glass.

“Mom, come on.”, he scoffed and rolled his eyes, “You've got to be fucking kidding me. Are you angry now?”

“Oh no, don't worry about your mother. Everything's fine.”

She emptied the glass with a few gulps and filled it back up, wobbling back to the couch with the bottle in her hand.

“Just go back to your room and do your thing, leave me here alone all by myself...”

“Did you call that other rehab place you and Kitsuchi talked about?”, he asked instead, ignoring the daggers she threw at him, “You said you were going to do it this week.”

She didn't answer and silently sat down, covering her legs with the blanket.

“Mom?”

“Leave me alone Hidan.”, she said sternly, not even looking at him.

“Fuckin-...fine.”

He threw his hands up and turned on his heel. He slammed the door to his room shut and ruffled through his hair, sitting down on his messy bed with a groan. What a fucking day. His phone lit up and vibrated in his pocket, informing him about an incoming text. At first he didn't want to check it, too tired and irritated to have any kind of conversation right now, but then he unlocked the device anyway. One message was from Deidara and the other one was – surprisingly – from Ino.

\--------------------

**From: Drittney Spears**

**'Hey are you back from the party yet??? :-D**

**How was it?**

**Hello??? >:-(**

**Answer your phone asshole'**

**To: Drittney Spears**

**'the fuck u want'**

**From:**

**'Just asking how you're doing like a decent friend dickweed'**

**To:**

**'Im fine I dont need a nanny**

**Party was alright**

**do u have time tmrw I gotta talk to u'**

**From:**

**'Sure lol**

**Pick me up at campus at 10'**

**To:**

**'Thats way too fucking early wtf'**

**From:**

**'Just do it**

**I'll be on my morning run before you come over**

**Bring coffee**

**Going to bed now nighty night shitwipe <3'**

**To:**

**'Fine**

**suck my cock'**

\--------------------

He rolled his eyes. Deidara could be a pain in the ass sometimes. His finger was hovering over the second text. He bit his lip and opened it, just then realizing that Ino was still saved in his phone as “Babe” with a red heart next to it. His insides churned unpleasantly. How could he have forgotten to change it? Didn't he delete her number entirely after they broke up?

\--------------------

**From: Babe ♥**

**'Hey Hidan**

**Thanks for everything today**

**My parents didn't notice a thing**

**I talked to my dad btw because of the job offer**

**Don't worry about it'**

**To: Babe ♥**

**'Np**

**Anytime'**

**From:**

**':-)'**

\--------------------

He threw his phone away and leaned back on his bed, crossing his arms behind his head. He stared at the ceiling and didn't even notice it when he drifted off into a dreamless sleep. The last thing he remembered was how everything in him was against changing that pet name to simply “Ino”.

*

_Sunday, June 17 th 2018_

“Did you find anything?”

“Nope. Not a trace. Not even a little note or something.”

“Well, what the hell did you expect? If there was any evidence the cops probably took it.”

Deidara jogged back up to him, hands in the pockets of his tracksuit.

“Are you serious right now? I don't trust those dummies as far as I can throw them after what you've told me.”

Hidan shrugged and took another drag from his cigarette before throwing it on the ground and putting it out with his foot. The wet gravel crackled under the movement. It was raining. They were at the abandoned self-storage place, looking for clues. Both of them were cold and miserable and Hidan could feel his socks getting wetter by the minute. He couldn't wait to get out of there.

“So, where to next?”, he asked.

“Honestly, I have no idea.”

Deidara looked around, searching the surrounding forest with squinted eyes.

“I just don't understand. Why would he leave his car here? It doesn't make any sense.”

“I dunno.”

“I have a bad feeling about this. I hope it was actually _him_ who drove it here. Not...”

He didn't finish the sentence. Hidan put a hand on his shoulder.

“Don't even think about it.”, he warned, “Now let's bounce before that forest fucker finds us.”

Deidara took a last glance at the storage unit the car was found in. It was empty. It had been towed away by the police and was now being held at an undisclosed location as evidence. The rest of the units were closed off, with all the doors down and locked with thick chains. A metal construction fence had been put up around the whole property, probably by the ranger, to keep people from using it any longer while it was still part of the “investigation”. If one could call it that. Deidara and his uncle weren't even informed about the recent discovery by the authorities, even though they should've been. Hidan figured more and more that Ino was right, there was something fishy going on and they were basically on their own on this.

They climbed over the fence and took the dirt path back to his Audi. Hidan had parked it on the side of the road since there was no parking lot or anything that could be used as such. That place apparently had been abandoned since the 70's and it had taken them a long while until they actually managed to find it.

“Thank god.”, Deidara exhaled when he sat down on the passenger seat, “It's cold as balls outside. By the way, how did Ino know where this place was anyway?”

“I don't know. She said she looked it up on the internet.”

“That's it?”

“Yeah, why?”

They've been wandering around the area for half an hour until Hidan had decided to call her up and ask for help. She'd send him the location to his phone pretty quickly and he didn't really think much of it, he'd just been glad they could finally put an end to poking around in the dark.

“I don't know...don't you think it's a little weird?”

The engine roared to life when he started the car. He steered the vehicle back on the road and toyed with the radio until he found a station playing an old, classic rock song – _Pour Some Sugar On Me_ by Def Leppard – to accompany them during their ride. Raindrops drummed against the windshield and the wipers screeched in protest when he threw them on, brushing across the window in a stuttering motion.

“Not really. Why would it be weird?”

“Think about it. How could she figure out so much just by eavesdropping on a phone call? And why would she even care enough to tell you about it?”

“Hell if I know.”, Hidan said with a shrug, “Why are you getting so paranoid all of a sudden? Aren't you glad she told me? We wouldn't know shit now if it wasn't for her.”

“Yeah, but still.”, Deidara bit his lip, “I think it's all a little too much to simply be a coincidence. She invites you to this party shortly after Sasori vanishes...she knows weirdly specific things about the case...”

“Oh, come on dude.”, he said with a small laugh, “You don't actually believe she's involved in some way, do you? And it wasn't just another party, it was her mom's birthday.”

“Alright, fine. Believe what you want. But whatever you're gonna do, keep her out of the loop for now.”

“Deidara, what the fuck is your problem? You're reading too much into this. Can't you just accept that she did a nice thing to help us out?”

“Oh yeah, sure. Ino and being nice.”

“Look, she's _my_ ex, I think I know her a little bit better than you. Trust me, she isn't...I don't know, plotting against us or some shit.”

“I'm not saying she's doing that.”, Deidara said with a huff, “I'm just telling you to be careful.”

Hidan rolled his eyes with a low exhale.

“Fine.”, he agreed exasperatedly, “Will do.”

He was about to take a right turn heading for campus when Deidara suddenly said:

“Hey, can we stop by at my uncle's? I gotta grab some stuff from my room.”

“Sure. Is he home by the way?”

“I don't know. Probably. Why?”

He scratched the back of his head.

“...I need to talk to him.”, he said hesitantly, “It's about my mom.”

Deidara raised his eyebrows.

“Is she still drinking?”

“Yeah.”

“Fuck.”

He merely nodded in agreement. Fuck, indeed.

“Isn't there any other place she could go to for rehab?”

“There's one. But she still hasn't called there and I've been too busy with work to take care of it. Jiraiya's been busting my balls lately...”

“You shouldn't be the one taking care of it anyway. Your mom's an adult. She can't push all that bullshit onto you.”

Technically, he was right. But Hidan just couldn't imagine leaving his mother to her own devices, she'd never ever get back up from that couch again, that was for sure.

“Look, it's my mom, what else am I supposed to fucking do here?”, he eventually murmured. Deidara sighed.

“I know. I just...worry about you.”

“I'm fine. But thanks, dude.”

It was silent for a while.

“This time...you have to talk to me _before_ something happens. Alright? Promise me.”

Hidan absently brushed over his left ear. He flashed a lopsided grin without tearing his glance away from the road.

“Promise.”

*

“Hey boys! What brings you here?”

Kitsuchi put his paint brush down and waved at them. He wiped his hands before walking down the wooden stairs with a friendly smile. Some small sprinkles of blue paint were covering his face and clothes and a little bit had even traveled onto his already graying beard. Judging by the metal cans and equipment behind him he was retouching the paint job on his home. The blue color had withered down over the years but part of the house was apparently already done.

“I just need to grab something from my room.”, Deidara said as he got out and gave his uncle a greeting hug.

“Alright. And how about you clean up in there once in a while? It looks like a goddamn bomb went off.”

But Deidara pretended he didn't hear it, walking up to the front door while throwing a “I'll be right back” over his shoulder.

“Hey, Kitsuchi.”, Hidan said and got out as well, returning his firm handshake. Some paint got stuck to his palm and Deidara's uncle offered him a used rag to wipe it off.

“Sorry about that, son. I was just trying to get some work done today. Can't do much in this damn rain but at least the front porch is finished.”

He put his hands on his hips.

“How are you doing? Has my nephew been keeping you out of trouble?”

Hidan shrugged and flashed him a grin.

“Eh, so-so.”, he answered with a gesture of his hand.

“Just what I expected.”, Kitsuchi said with a hearty laugh, “And what about your mother? Is everything alright at home?”

“Kinda...”, Hidan bit his lip and scratched the back of his head, “I mean...not really. I...actually wanted to talk to you about that.”

He could already feel his stomach getting in knots. His heart-rate had quickened and he started nervously kneading his hands. He hated conversations like this. He swallowed hard and forced himself to push through anyway.

“Mom, she's...not doing so well.”

Deidara's uncle sighed and ran a hand across his face.

“I was afraid that would be the case.”, he murmured, “Alright. Walk me to the garage. I need to grab some tools. We can talk afterwards.”

Kitsuchi gestured to follow him and Hidan started walking, hands shoved in his pockets and an uneasy feeling sitting in his chest. He helped him carry the needed tools inside before he was offered a chair in the kitchen and a complimentary cup of fresh, hot coffee. He faintly heard Deidara and Kurotsuchi arguing from upstairs and the sound of rain drumming against the windows filled the silence. Kitsuchi pulled his chair back and it screeched as it was dragged over the red tile floor. He sat down with a huff, coffee in his hand as well, and gave him an expecting look.

“Okay, son. Tell me what's on your mind.”

Hidan hesitated. He watched the steam rising up from his beverage and dancing in all different directions when he blew on it. He carefully took a sip and felt it warming his freezing insides almost instantly.

“I was just wondering...why the hell mom got kicked out.”, he said eventually, “She didn't say why. You picked her up last Thursday, did she tell you anything?”

Kitsuchi brushed across the table with a heavy palm and cleared his throat.

“No, she didn't.”, he said, “I just received a call from her asking me to pick her up. But...I was able to talk to one of the nurses who worked with her group. The reason your mother was asked to leave is because...well, she smuggled alcohol into the facility. Not only that, but she'd been secretly distributing it to the other patients.”

His jaw dropped.

“Are you fucking serious right now?!”

“Ease up on that language, boy. But yes, this is what I've been told.”

Kitsuchi scratched at his beard.

“They had to inform the insurance company as well. It's gonna be tough to get her into that other place I've found. But it's not impossible. She just needs a written note from a doctor or therapist.”

“...Okay.”, Hidan murmured and bit his lip. How in the hell was he supposed to get her to do _that?!_

“Don't worry, I'll take care of it.”, Deidara's uncle said like he could read his mind, “I will come visit tomorrow afternoon. I'll talk to her. You have enough on your plate already.”

He reached over and patted his shoulder in an affectionate way.

“It's the least I can do. I'm sorry I didn't tell you right away, I was hoping she'd do it herself. You two are like family to me. And family sticks together, no matter what.”

Hidan was only able to give a curt nod in response. He took a sip from his coffee in order to swallow the lump forming in his throat. It was way too hot and burned his mouth but he didn't even really notice it. Kitsuchi leaned back in his chair, the wooden material creaking under his weight. He crossed his arms and looked out the window with an unreadable look on his face. Outside the rain kept drumming against the glass. His gaze was fixed on some imaginary point seemingly far away.

“Everything's going to be alright, kid.”, he said, “I promise you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!  
> This chapter was so much fun to write. Ino's mother doesn't have a name in the anime, or at least I didn't find it, so I just gave her one. :-) I hope it kinda fits, at least. This chapter was extra long to make up for the short one last time. I had HUGE writer's block, as I already mentioned. How did you like it? Was it interesting or boring? I'm really excited for the next chapter, I have a lot of things planned in regards of getting the plot to move a bit further. Also, I originally planned on making Hidan and Sakura a couple but I felt like that would just complicate things too much. It'd be an unneccessary sub-plot and I didn't want to just toss Sakura aside as soon as she's not needed for plot anymore. So I made them friends instead. :-) She's going to be more involved, for those who are wondering. It's just gonna take a while to get there.  
> Anyway, thank you so much for reading. I really hope you liked it! If you did, please leave a comment or kudos if you want. Sorry for rambling! Until next chapter!  
> xoxo  
> Rose


	6. Chapter 6

_Unknown day, June 2018_

It smelled like engine fumes and motor oil. The weather was moderately warm and the sun shyly peeked out from behind the moving clouds. The dry and dusty air worsened the taste in his already thirst-ridden mouth; he swallowed and his saliva tasted a bit like dirt. A truck passed him. The large vehicle crawled out of the parking lot ever so slowly, huffing and puffing and loudly heading back onto the empty road. The sandy ground crackled underneath the heavy tires and a cloud of brown dust rose up into the air. He squinted and rubbed his eyes with the sleeve of his jacket when the breeze carried particles of dust over to him, blowing them directly in his face.

Meanwhile the truck was almost gone, disappearing behind branches of nearby trees accompanying both sides of the street. A small, red car left the parking lot as well and followed shut. The middle-aged woman inside gave him a small, sympathetic smile and waved before driving away. He'd seen her dial up a number on her phone shortly after dropping him off and immediately knew she'd contacted the police. He bit his lip. So she did recognize him. The concerned looks she'd been dishing out during the ride should've given that away but he'd been too worn-out and tired to worry about it. Now he regretted not being more careful.

Sasori turned around and glanced across the lonely truck stop. There was a small, grubby diner surrounded by a nearly empty parking lot and a wide-spread forest. Next to it stood a closed old gas station, missing the time of it's golden days. The sign on the side of the road said “BISTRO” in fat black letters. _Come inside and eat fresh! Cheap prizes. Open 24/7. Bingo Thursdays moved to Friday_ , was the wording beneath it. He shoved a hand in his pocket. A few coins jingled in his jeans but the rest of the money was gone. But hopefully it would at least be enough for some water. He had nothing else left, only the clothes on his body and the backpack on his shoulders; and his nagging fear, urging him to hurry up and find someone who would let him hitchhike to the next town. He had to leave quickly in case the cops would arrive.

He walked over to the diner and pushed the door open. It was just as old as it's surroundings, maybe even older, and had a trashy 80's flare to it. But it was surprisingly clean, an improvement to the ones he'd been in before. Even the waitress was nice. She threw him a welcoming smile over her shoulder while refilling someone's empty cup with steaming hot coffee. Longing filled his chest. There were a lot of things he'd give right now to have some of that as well. He was incredibly exhausted, his head hurt and he could feel painful blisters forming on his feet. Part of him pondered if he should talk to her, explain that he didn't have any money on him and help do the dishes instead or something. But he didn't.

Instead he pulled his hood deeper into his face and glanced around. The crammed interior smelled like coffee, greasy food and tobacco. A small, old TV hanging from the ceiling showed a football game, failing to entertain the disinterested customers. It was quiet besides the host talking about a touchdown, sizzling coming from the kitchen and the occasional clinking of spoons hitting the inside of used mugs. His stomach rumbled when the cook reached a plate of eggs and bacon through the small window and his mouth immediately started to water. How long has it been since he had a proper meal? The sweaty, greasy man hit the bell loudly a few times and it pulled him out of his thoughts. The waitress hurried over, grabbing the plate to serve it and gave him a sickeningly kind smile.

“Hi there honey, how can I help you?”, she sweetly chirped, not actually giving him the opportunity to answer. “There's a free booth over there, go ahead and sit down and I'll be with you in a second. Okay?”

He curtly nodded and did as she told. The faux black leather on his seat lightly squeaked when he sat down. It was full of holes and he could see the actual material underneath it. He moved over until he was right next to the window and let his glance wander once more. Customers were spare. Apparently this wasn't exactly the place people liked to stop at. And he couldn't blame them. There was a man wearing a gray scarf covering half of his face, sitting alone at a table and talking to someone on the phone. He had a dog with him leaning against his leg, a large German shepherd mix with light-brown fur and a blue bandanna around its neck. The dog lazily wagged its tail when it noticed Sasori's look before going right back to sleeping, resting its head on its paws. Another man sat at the counter on a high stool, nose-deep in his news paper and loudly slurping coffee. And the last customer, probably a trucker, was seated at the far end of the diner, drinking beer and obviously hiding a porn magazine behind his book.

“Alright honey, what can I get ya?”, the waitress asked after walking up to him. She pulled a little notebook out and clicked her pen with a warm smile.

“A glass of water.”, Sasori answered, “How much is that?”

“Oh, water's on the house here.”, she said with a wave of her hand and wrote it down, “Anything else?”

“No, that would be all.”

“Are you sure? Not hungry? No? Okay then, suit yourself. One water, coming up!”

She swiftly walked away with her heels clacking against the floor and returned with the ordered beverage. He eagerly gulped it down in mere seconds, almost chocking in the process. He wiped his wet chin, embarrassed, and it earned him a chuckle followed by his glass being instantly refilled.

“There you go. If there's anything else you need just say the word, yeah?”

The woman smiled again and walked away. This time he faintly returned it, and he'd probably never been so grateful for water in his entire life. He put the glass back down and ran a hand through his messy hair. His body felt tired. It was begging him to rest but he knew he couldn't do that. Not now. The dog owner briefly looked over to him and their eyes met. Sasori was already irritated enough from a lack of sleep and he raised a challenging eyebrow, giving him an annoyed glare. Luckily the man glanced away, murmuring something into his phone. Well. There was probably a zero percent chance of that guy letting him hitch a ride now. That only left him with two options. The man at the counter and the pervert in the back. Great. He decided to try asking the one with the news paper first and stood up, walking up to him.

“Hey-”

“Not interested.”

The man brought his cup to his lips and took another loud sip, not even looking up.

“I'm not into guys. Now get.”

He furrowed his brows.

“I'm not a prostitute. I just need a ride.”

“Sure. Well, whatever the hell you are you've come to the wrong fucking guy here, I'm telling ya. Now get the fuck out of my face.”

Sasori quietly scoffed and rolled his eyes.

“Asshole.”, he muttered as he walked back to his booth but turned around halfway there, feeling eyes on his back. The guy sitting in the back was already staring at him sleazily. He was probably in his 40's but looked much older. His dark, gray-ish hair was thinning on top and he had a short, unkept beard. He was wearing a tattered brown leather jacket over his dirty lumberjack shirt and black track pants. He was almost down on his 3rd beer and raised the almost empty glass at him. Not exactly the type of person Sasori would usually trust; but it wasn't like he had a choice. Because in the same moment he noticed scarf guy leaving his table, his dog right beside him. The heavy entrance door swung back and forth a bit before finally closing shut again. He swallowed hard.

“...Hey.”

“Hey.”

The trucker grinned from ear to ear when he walked up to him, flashing a gold tooth and several gaps missing the real ones.

“Need somethin', angel face?”

“I need a ride.”, Sasori simply responded. The trucker laughed hoarsely, clearing his throat and putting his cigarette out on his unfinished plate of sunny-side eggs.

“Where to?”

“What's your next stop?”

“Not far from 'ere. Coupla miles.”

That wasn't enough but better than nothing. He was gestured to sit down and ignored how the man started to subtly feel up his leg under the table.

“Think you can take me with you?”

Trucker guy laughed again and put his “book” down. Sasori managed to get a glimpse of the cover. Straight porn, but with that dude it was probably anything goes.

“Oh, I can give you a ride, alright. No problem.”, the man said casually and rolled another cigarette with his grubby fingers. He licked over the thin paper with his tongue, raising a brow. Crumbs of tobacco tumbled onto his beer gut and he brushed them off, holding eye contact.

“But it'll cost ya. If you get my meanin'.”

An unpleasant shiver ran down Sasori's spine. Part of him wanted to vomit then and there. The other part wanted to run away as far as possible from that creep. But he couldn't. Because he had a plan. A desperate one, he was aware.

“Sounds good.”

“How much?”

He named the price.

“Damn. Not a cheap one, are ya? But such a cute face...”

The trucker mustered him from head to toe, scratching at his stubbly chin. He made a vague grunting sound.

“Can you go any lower?”

“No. And I'm taking 50 up front.”

“Seriously?”, he scoffed, “Come on. Don't be busting my balls, boy. Whoever's that pimp of yours sure runs a tight ship. Forget it. You'll get your money afterwards, don't worry.”

“I said 50 up front, asshole.”

“...Fine. Cocky bastard.”, the man muttered and cursed under his breath, getting his wallet out and sliding a bank note across the table. “Fuckin' lizards these days...bunch of stupid brats, all of them. Alright. Let's go.”

“Don't you want to finish your beer?”

“What? Oh, yeah...”

The trucker gulped the rest of his beverage down, already halfway standing. By the way he was swaying one could tell how hammered he already was and he clumsily fell back on his seat when he couldn't stand on his feet anymore.

“Goddamn it...”, he muttered.

“How about another one?”, Sasori offered.

“Are you shitting me? 'Nother gallon of that piss? No way.”

He gave him a sleazy smile.

“And I don't want to waste our precious time together. You're probably on the clock now, aren't ya?”

“It's alright.”

Sasori returned the smile, feeling his insides churn in disgust.

“I'll make an exception for you.”

Trucker guy hoarsely laughed.

“Right on then. Waitress!”

The woman hurried over to them, friendly as ever, but gave Sasori a subtle concerned look.

“Yes?”, she chirped.

“D'you have anything else besides this rancid shit you serve here?”, trucker guy asked, “I need _real_ booze, you get me?”

The waitress plastered a fake smile on her face and nodded.

“Of course, let me check in the back for you, hon.”

She walked away and soon returned with a glass of rum and another water, placing both beverages carefully on the table.

“Enjoy!”, she said and left, throwing another concerned look over her shoulder. The trucker emptied his glass pretty quickly, throwing it back once and slamming it on the table with a wet exhale.

“Now that's what I'm talkin' about!”, he said and ordered another. 2 Drinks turned into 5 and soon the man was leaning his elbows on the table, head slightly hanging over the empty glasses. But he wasn't nearly as drunk as Sasori wanted him to be. The best case scenario would've been that he'd fall asleep and he could sneak away with the money; but trucker guy could hold his booze surprisingly well.

“Alright. I'm done here. Let's go.”, he slurred and shakily stood up, holding his balance on the back of his seat.

“Shit. I gotta take a piss...”

Sasori stood up as well, distancing himself from him so he wouldn't end up having to help him walk. The man nodded outside.

“My truck's over there.”, he said lowly, “Door's open. You know what to do. I'll be there in a second.”

He payed for his meal and left the booth, disappearing into the bathroom. The waitress looked at Sasori once more when he walked past the counter, apparently trying to warn him with her eyes. He ignored her and opened the door, leaving the diner behind him. It had gotten cloudier outside and the first raindrops were already falling from the sky. He quickly checked if the bathroom door was still closed, just to be sure; then took off towards the forest. He sprinted across the parking lot, backpack bumping against his back, and climbed over the small stone fence bordering the truck stop. He had to fight his way through some tall bushes and their branches cut up his arms and face as he hurried deeper into the forest.

“Hey! HEY!!”, he heard the trucker yell behind him. Shit. He'd been caught. He ran faster. Stones and roots were in his way and he stumbled over them more than once, cursing under his rapid breath. His lungs burned. He zigzagged around the trees, taking a sharp right turn when he spotted a few huge rocks all the way down a steep hill, a perfect hideout. At least from a drunk pervert. His blood drummed in his ears as he hurried down, not turning around.

“Come back here you little cocksucker!!”, it came faintly from behind. It sounded a lot further away now. He was almost rid of him. But then he missed a small root hidden under some brown leafs and stumbled again, this time unable to catch his fall and dropping down face first, involuntarily rolling down the rest of the hill. Forest debris and dirt were stuck to his clothes and a dull pain radiated from his nose, followed by a warm liquid trickling down. He forced himself to get back up and kept running but stumbled again, this time because of his open shoelace and then there was a heavy, meaty hand on his shoulder and he felt the first punch before he even realized it.

“You dirty _fuckin_ ' whore!”, the trucker snarled and bowed down, grabbing a fistful of his hair and painfully tugging him back up.

“Thought you could fuck me over just like that, didn't ya?!”

He raised his fist once more and let it dangerously hover above him.

“Fuckin' piece of shit!”, he growled, face only inches away from his own and the smell of liquor strong on his breath, “You just ripped off the wrong goddamn guy today, you little cunt.”

Sasori struggled and squirmed beneath him but the trucker pinned his wrists above his head with one hand and wrapped the other around his chin in a vice grip. His whole face was throbbing in pain, he tasted copper in his mouth and for a brief terrifying second he wasn't sure if he would get out of this alive. He tried to wiggle out by kicking his legs but there was no chance of escape. For a drunk pervert, that man was pretty strong.

“Last time I checked you still owe me a good time.”, trucker guy dangerously rumbled, “So how about you better shut the _fuck_ up now and give me what I fucking _paid_ for before I-”

Suddenly a dog barked. Sasori's eyes widened when he managed to catch a quick glance over the trucker's shoulder. It couldn't be.

“Hey!”, someone yelled and soon the man with the scarf showed up. He quickly and skillfully jogged down the hill, his dog pouncing ahead. It loudly barked and growled as it jumped around them both, baring its sharp yellow teeth and ready to attack at any time.

“Kakashi? What the _fuck_ are you doing here?!”, trucker guy snarled and quickly whipped a gun out of his jacket, pointing it right at him.

“Didn't you leave already? You better fuck off if you know what's good for ya, buddy! This is personal business! And get a hold of that dirty fleabag over there, I don't have time for your goddamn bullshit today!”

Scarf guy calmly grabbed his dog by its bandanna and managed to get it under control in mere seconds. He wasn't phased at all. He looked almost bored as he mustered the weapon pointed directly at his chest.

“Let the boy go.”, he said with a huff, “He didn't do anything.”

“Didn't do anything?!”, the trucker repeated mockingly, “This little _bitch_!”, he yelled in Sasori's face, “Stole 50 fucking bucks from me!”

“So what?”, the man apparently named Kakashi asked with a shrug, “Let him go, he's just a bratty kid. Don't tell me that's what got you so riled up. Just take your money and be done with it.”

“Oh fuck off, mind your own business! Get back to your dirty rotten trailer and pretend like you didn't see anything or I'll place a cap in your stupid brain. And don't test me, you damn well know I'll do it!”

“Well, I'd like to.”, Kakashi murmured, scratching at his chin, “But you know, I just figured you could use a little heads up just in case.”

“A heads up? What the hell are you talking about?”

“I saw the waitress call the police just now. Whatever you two were up to, you don't have time for that anyway. You should get going, man. Seriously.”

“What?!”

Trucker guy loudly groaned and shook his head, letting a few curses escape his lips.

“Fuck! Fucking hell!”

He looked between Sasori and Kakashi before making a frustrated sound and finally putting the gun away.

“Damn it. Alright, fine.”

Sasori felt immediate relief in his arms and shoulders when he was let go of. He let out a small breath and shakily tried to stand up when the trucker suddenly turned around – and forcefully kicked him into the stomach. The air was pushed out of his lungs and a wave of pain shot through his body as he winced from the impact of the kick. He turned over and dry-heaved on the ground, coughing and struggling to take a breath. Blood and spit dripped down on the dark earth.

“All because of that little, screwed-up piece of shit!”

The trucker bent down and at first Sasori thought he was in for another round of punches but instead

he searched his pockets until he held the stolen money in his hand. Then he kicked him again, this time with less force thankfully, before walking away for good. Sasori saw him argue with scarf guy from the corner of his teary eyes while he kept dry-heaving. His head felt light and dizzy. A few more profanities were yelled his way, then there were footsteps growing quieter and quieter until they were gone. It was over. He was safe. Hopefully. He took another shaky, pained breath and tried to get up. But his knees gave out under him and he dropped back down on the ground with a grunt, holding his stomach.

“Easy there, kid.”, he heard scarf guy say. The man's dog was all over him in the blink of an eye, sniffing him with sad whimpers and licking his fingers when he covered his face. Sasori tried to push the dog away but he couldn't, everything hurt no matter how careful he tried to move.

“Rough day, huh?”

The man squatted down, his dark eyes indicating that he was actually somewhat amused.

“Fuck off.”, he hissed, giving him a wary look. Suddenly the part about the police came back to his mind. He felt the blood leave his face.

“Did...did she really call the cops?”, he manged to croak. Scarf guy chuckled.

“Nope.”

“Oh, thank god.”, Sasori breathed. Then suddenly his lights went out.

*

They were moving. That was the first thing he noticed. He heard the faint rumbling of tires against the road and the sound of the radio. The second thing was the pungent smell of dog fur. Sasori slowly opened his eyes and scrunched up his nose, immediately regretting it. A sharp pain shot across his face and he could feel the dry, clogged-up blood on his skin crack apart. He hissed. So it hadn't been a dream.

His glance wandered around without his brain taking anything in at first. He spotted his backpack slumped together in a corner. Also a large window. The road was coming fast at him and he absently figured he had to be in someone's truck. And laying in a small bed, apparently, covered with a scratchy sheet. Outside the street almost looked like it was swimming. Rain was hailing down, thick fat drops hitting the glass mercilessly, and the windshield wipers squeaked from time to time when they moved. It felt hypnotizing and his eyelids started to droop, inviting him to return into the sweet, dark nothingness. He almost gave in but then a cold wet snout touched his hand. He opened his eyes again. A little pug was starting at him with big, brown eyes and drool dripping out of its mouth. It was wearing some sort of bodysuit and flicked its pink tongue over its nose to catch the running snot, curiously tilting its head. Without really thinking, he reached out and scratched the dog behind the ear. It made a small, happy grunt in return and wagged its tail, like it had been waiting for him to do that the entire time. A small smile fought its way onto Sasori's face and the movement reminded him painfully of his other injuries. His lower lip felt bruised and a little swollen. He licked the tip of his tongue across the wound and was confronted with the disgusting taste of copper, a taste he'd grown accustomed to and yet disliked. Yup. Busted. Definitely.

“You're awake.”, it suddenly came from the driver's seat, “Thank goodness. I thought you were dead.”

Sasori flinched up in shock and forcefully threw the blanket back. A warm, heavy weight slid from his feet and another dog appeared from under the blanket, giving him a confused and offended look. He had woken him up, apparently.

“I hope Guruko didn't bother you back there.”, the muffled sounding voice continued casually, “He likes to cuddle.”

He didn't know how to respond to that.

“...Who are-”

“It's me. Remember?”

The man swiftly turned around in his seat and gave him a friendly look with his eyes. It was scarf guy. He turned back away, focusing on the road again.

“And you are...?”

Sasori didn't answer. He was too busy sorting everything out in his throbbing head. It slowly started to down on him that he'd lost consciousness somehow and was now alone in that man's truck, unable to do anything about it. He didn't even have something to protect himself if shit were to hit the fan. Another fantastic situation he'd managed to get himself into.

“...llo? Are you alright back there?”

Scarf guy pulled him out of his thoughts. The man glanced around again for a second, checking on him.

“Yeah...”, Sasori murmured. He didn't recognize his own voice, it sounded hoarse and off. But most importantly, weak. He hated that part the most. Meanwhile the dog named Guruko hopped off the bed and cuddled up next to the 5 (!!) other dogs already laying on the floor. So that's why it smelled so horribly inside the truck. The dogs didn't pay any attention to him, besides the pug who was still waiting for more ear scratches and the German shepherd mix sitting on the passenger seat. He recognized that one right away, It was the dog who basically saved his ass from getting murdered before. Or worse.

“You sound thirsty.”, scarf guy said amused, “I got some water in the glove compartment if you want. Just go ahead and grab it. Akino, down.”

The dog named Akino did as he told and got off, laying down on the floor between the two seats. Sasori stood up and immediately sat back down when the world around him started to spin. He tried again after a few minutes and this time successfully managed to fight his way through the pile of animals, dropping onto the seat with a huff. He ignored how scarf guy would look at him every once in a while as he took the plastic bottle out and removed the cap. The water felt amazingly cooling on his dry throat and he emptied it in a few long gulps, lowly exhaling after he was done.

“Feel better?”

He shrugged.

“...I guess. Where are you headed?”

He was worried that the man was planning on dropping him off at the police station after all. Or the hospital; both places he was trying to avoid like the plague.

“Gas station. This baby needs a bit more fuel if I want to make it to the next town. You can buy something to eat there and maybe clean your face. You look horrible. No offense.”

He should be offended but he was probably right.

“...None taken.”

Sasori let out a breath he didn't know he was holding and crossed his arms. It was the beginning of a long silence. Scarf guy didn't seem like a man of many words and Sasori wasn't in the mood for talking. He was actually kind of glad. The last thing he needed right now was a chatterbox pestering him with annoying questions. He looked around. The inside was a bit dirty, but he didn't expect anything else from someone who had 7 dogs. There were photographs pinned to the walls with tape, some were Polaroids and others were simply black and white. Seemingly useless clutter and dog toys were literally everywhere and made the already small room appear even more crammed. A fur-covered, black rug decorated the floor and old, beige curtains were put up on both the left and right window. Different chains and ornaments were dangling from the rear-view mirror, sometimes quietly clacking against each other when the truck drove across another pothole. The bed was messy, obviously, and stacks of books and magazines were hidden underneath it. Another book was laying above the dusty glove compartment, open somewhere in the middle and turned around so that the cover was seen. It was blue and looked kind of used, with yellow writing on it and a picture of a white figure kneeling down. _Icha Icha Tactics_. _How to SUCCESSFULLY stop yourself from developing feelings. Now with EVEN MORE baffling knowledge! By Jiraiya Uzumaki_.

Sasori pulled a mildly disgusted face. Another porn reader. But at least that book didn't seem as tasteless. Probably. The name rang a bell in his head, however. Jiraiya. He knew that guy. He was the owner of the “Artz & Craftz”. The art store Hidan worked at. He pressed his hand against his forehead, feeling an almost unbearable amount of regret. He just _had_ to walk in there that night, hadn't he?

Suddenly Akino put his head on his leg. He looked up to him with big, bright eyes and exhaled through his nose, whimpering. Sasori sighed. He petted his head and Akino wagged his tail in glee, letting out a grunt. The warm fur felt comforting and pulled him out of the literal vortex of negative thinking he'd been about to sink into. He glanced out of the window and watched the raindrops on the glass race each other as they were pushed to the sides by the headwind, struggling to think about anything _but_ the art store. Or the people who worked there.

“He likes you. Strange.”, scarf guy said thoughtfully, “Akino's usually not good with strangers.”

He wanted to ask why. But he didn't. The faint scars on the dog's body already said it all. Also, he couldn't be bothered with engaging in a conversation right now. There was too much going on in his head. Like who the hell that guy with the scarf was and why he was apparently helping him for example. Or where he was supposed to go after they'd arrive at the gas station. The 50 bucks were gone, he was back at almost 0. He'd have to ask him which region exactly they were in and go from there. He could just look it up on his phone but he had to toss it, and the old Nokia he was given was barely fit for sending a text. He needed a map. A literal one.

“We'll be there soon.”, scarf guy informed him, “Only 20 minutes left or so.”

He simply nodded in response. After a short while of silence and useless talking from the radio host a 50's song came up. Scarf guy perked up at that and slightly increased the volume with a fond look in his eyes, whistling off-key to the tune. Soon after Little Anthony started crooning into the microphone, singing something about...love, probably. Sasori couldn't tell exactly. The lyrics were vague but judging by soft, dreamy melody it had to have something to do with it.

“... _I don't wanna be left on the outside...all alone...well I guess I had my day...and you left me go my way...now it's me who has to pay_...”

At first it bothered him that scarf guy had actually started _singing_ along. The whistling was bad enough. But then he just accepted it; he wasn't in a place to complain. He kept petting the dog and glanced out the window, absently counting the raindrops in an attempt to distract himself from his thoughts. Eventually he drifted off to sleep again.

*

He was woken up by loud, excited barking.

“Hey, calm down you guys!”, he heard scarf guy call out. “Shiba, sit! Goddamn- alright, alright...bunch of crazies...”

Soon after he felt a soft shove against his arm. Sasori flinched away in reflex and scarf guy held his hands up in defense, apologetic look in his eyes.

“Sorry, kid. Wake up, we're here.”

The rest of his sentence was drowned out by even more barking noises. They climbed out of the truck with the dogs being the first ones to feel the chilly, fresh air. Sasori took a deep breath and stretched his legs. His body felt more rested than it did a few days ago, but now it hurt. All in all he felt like he'd been run over by a car but he had worse and figured there was no time for complaining. At least he was still alive.

It had stopped raining and the sun was peeking out behind the clouds. The asphalt was wet, with large puddles covering it here and there and droplets of water were dripping from the roof of the run-down gas station. The parking lot was empty, just as the 3 pumps, and not a single soul could be seen anywhere. Basically the whole place was surrounded by nothing but pine trees and mountains. A bunch of crows screamed in protest and flew away when the dogs started eagerly chasing them and scarf guy had to whistle in order to make them return to him and away from the main road. The bored looking cashier briefly threw them a glance from inside before returning his attention to his phone when they walked past him, heading for the bathroom stalls around the corner.

“Alright. Take your time.”, scarf guy said, hands on his hips. “I'm gonna get some gas. And don't just skip off on me, okay? Or at least tell me before you do.”

He reached inside the pocket of his jean jacket and put a pack of tissues in his hand.

“Here. You'll need these.”, he gestured to his own face with his finger, “For all the blood.”

Sasori hesitantly took the pack without saying a word. He watched him walk away, with two of his dogs in tow, and bit his bruised lip. So much for not being too depended on other people. His dignity had already taken a nosedive since the whole mess had started but this was getting ridiculous.

He sighed and shoved the door open. The bathroom stalls were gross and dirty and wet grime was spread on the once white tile floor. Small pebbles cracked under his dirt-covered shoes and he had to avoid a couple of glass shards lying on the ground and in the sink. Somebody had apparently punched in the mirror and he couldn't properly see his face because of all the cracks. But it was enough. He looked fucked, to put it mildly. But not as fucked as he thought. A small purple bruise was covering the bridge of his nose. It was sensitive to the touch, but at least didn't appear or feel broken. Dried, clogged-up blood was sticking to his skin, mostly underneath his nose and on his chin. His lower lip was busted and crusty and another large purple bruise embellished his chin where the trucker's punch had landed. His clothes were dirty and his jeans had green spots and a hole on his knees, but nothing he couldn't try to wipe off or stitch up. He carefully lifted his sweatshirt to check his stomach. His ribs hurt a bit and small bruises had developed here and there, but otherwise it looked like he'd gotten out of that situation pretty much unscathed. He'd really been in luck so far. But he knew eventually it was gonna run out.

He put water on the tissues and carefully cleaned the dirt and blood off his face, unable to stop the wince escaping his lips when he touched a particular sore spot. He pushed through until he was moderately clean and didn't look like complete shit. Not exactly easy to tell in the dim fluorescent lighting but it would have to do for now.

“All done?”, scarf guy asked when he returned. He was leaning against his now perfectly parked truck, reading in that weird book from earlier. His dogs were running around and chasing each other.

“That lip looks bad. You should get it checked if you have the chance.”

Sasori absently traced over the busted wound with his tongue. He tasted fresh blood again because it reopened during the clean-up process.

“It'll be fine.”, he murmured.

“Alright then. If you say so.”

Scarf guy put his book down and watched some of his dogs jumping around in a deep puddle.

“Look at them.”, he said with a chuckle, “Not a care in the world. And who is gonna have to clean them up later? You guessed it. Me.”

He yawned and stretched his arms with a low grunt. Sasori mustered him. He already had gray hair but didn't look that old. The black scarf he wore was tightly wrapped around his mouth and nose, going down to his neck where it was tied together in a double knot. He wondered how he was able to breath through that thing. His dark-blue sweatpants had little stains and crumbs from chips on them and his gray Heavy-Metal T-shirt looked old and washed out, with the white and red print flaky and almost gone. He wore crocs on his naked feet and the green jean jacket really completed the “I gave up at some point”-look. That he was also covered in fur went without saying.

“Are they all yours?”

Sasori nodded towards the pile of dogs. Scarf guy scratched the back of his neck.

“Well, technically.”, he explained, “They're all strays I've picked up over the years. Pakkun over there, the pug, he was the first one. Found him dumpster-diving behind a fast food place 5 or 6 years ago I think...couldn't help but take him with me.”

The name Pakkun rang a bell in his head. So did Akino but he couldn't exactly place his finger on where he'd heard them before. He remained silent as he stood next to the truck, hands shoved in his pockets. Then suddenly he remembered.

“ _The Seven Ninja Dogs_.”

Scarf guy almost dropped his book. A mix of shock and speechlessness was prominent in his eyes as he let out a whistle.

“You know about those?”, he inquired, genuinely interested. Sasori gave him a curt nod and and wanted to leave it at that. But then Akino came running to him with a large stick in his mouth, dropping it on the floor and asking him to throw it. He picked the slimy stick up and did what he was asked, watching Akino sprint away excitedly with some of the other dogs following him.

“I used to read the comics when I was a kid.”, he hesitantly disclosed.

Scarf guy let out a surprised laugh.

“Really? Damn, it's been a long while since I've met someone who remembers them. Those comics weren't even that popular back in the 80's.”

He looked at him.

“How did you get a hold of them? They're pretty rare.”

“My dad was a collector. He owned every issue there ever was.”

“Wow. That's incredible. Does he still have them?”

Sasori bit his lip. He didn't remember anymore where his grandmother had put all of his stuff after the funeral.

“...Not sure.”

“Oh. Well I hope he finds them. They're probably worth a fortune nowadays.”

Suddenly a spark of mischief lit up in scarf guy's eyes.

“Tell you what. I bet 20 bucks you can't remember all of their names.”

“What?”

“I'm serious. 20 bucks if you can name all my dogs.”

Sasori rolled his eyes.

“I'm not in the mood for games...”

“Well, alright. Shame. But I guess you wouldn't be able to do it anyway. Then _you_ would owe me 20 bucks and I'm not sure if I'd ever see those...”

Scarf guy crossed his arms and quirked an eyebrow, eyes going back and forth between him and the pile of dogs. He was challenging him.

“Alright, fine.”, Sasori agreed with a huff, secretly eager to rummage through the dark corners of his brain. It's been years but he was probably able to pull it together. He felt silly. That guy was really weird; but he seemed harmless.

“Pakkun, Akino...”, he began, counting the names on his fingers, “Bull, Urushi...Shiba...Bisuke...Guruko...and...”

“And?”

Sasori couldn't stop the triumphant grin forming on his face.

“Uhei.”

Scarf guy chuckled.

“Holy shit.”, he said, “Yup, that's all of them. Can't believe you actually did it. Congrats, kid.”

He reached in his pocket and fumbled the money out.

“There you go. A deal's a deal. You won.”

Sasori's pride complained when he took the money but he tried to ignore it. 20 bucks were 20 bucks and heaven knew he needed them now. He shoved the money in his jeans, feeling relieved. Now he at least had something.

“Oh, by the way. Speaking of names...”, scarf guy suddenly said and stretched his hand out. “Pardon my manners. I'm Kakashi.”

He hesitantly shook his hand and nodded.

“You're not gonna tell me who you are I'm guessing.”

“...I'd prefer not to.”

Kakashi simply shrugged and didn't say much after that. He eventually announced that he'd take the dogs for a little walk and soon they all ended up marching through the forest. The leashes clinking in his hand and the debris beneath their shoes were the only things speaking for a long while until they arrived at an abandoned skate park. It was already covered in weeds and tall grass and an old, rusty car was silently decaying in the far end between some bushes. Kakashi found a green, roughed-up tennis ball and started throwing it. His dogs chased it with loud barks and Sasori was a little amused at how they kept fighting over who got to catch and carry it back every time. At first it was hard for him to remember which dog had which name but he got the hang of it pretty quickly. Akino and Pakkun were easy. Then there was Bull, a large fat Pit Bull Terrier who rarely participated in the games and preferred to lazily lie on the ground and fart. Uhei was the brown and white one and also the most active, he was the one who'd catch the ball most often. Urushi was a small gray one, Shiba had a white snout just like Guruko, who was missing a chunk of his tail and Bisuke was the terrifying, angry Chihuahua who'd bark at anything and nothing.

Sasori watched them for a while, then walked over to one of the park benches. It was still a little wet and he searched for the driest possible spot before gingerly sitting down. His socks got wet from the grass and he huffed, ruffling a hand through his messy hair and massaging his forehead. His head hurt. He needed some painkillers, or at least a cigarette to make it through the day but he had neither of those.

“Already tired?”, Kakashi called from the distance as he threw the tennis ball across the now blue sky. Sasori shrugged and didn't answer. The ball flew through the park a couple more times, then the dogs got busy chasing a squirrel and Kakashi sat down next to him on the bench.

“I don't get kids these days. When I was your age I was still running around looking for snails or something.”

“I'm 23. Stop calling me kid already.”

“Really?”, Kakashi raised his eyebrows, “You look way younger. Sorry about that.”

He whipped out his book and leaned back, crossing his legs.

“Well, I'm gonna relax for a bit if you don't mind. We're gonna be on the road soon, I have to meet my deadline, but the dogs have to get out their sillies first.”

Sasori gave him a surprised look.

“We?”

“Yeah. Aren't you coming with? I'm guessing we're both headed the same direction anyway.”

“...I don't need your charity work.”

“Alright. Suit yourself. Stay here where no one ever stops at. See how you find your way back to civilization.”

“I can take care of myself.”

“How come you're still here then? Shouldn't you already be on your way to god knows where?”

Sasori scoffed and didn't respond to that. Kakashi chuckled.

“Look. I don't know what your deal is and what you're up to. But you seem kinda in a pickle. I'm headed Northwest, I have to deliver all that dog food for the company. I got friends who live in a small town near there, they own a B&B. They told me there's a lake somewhere with a wooden cabin. No owner. Maybe you can crash there for a while and see where things go.”

Sasori bit his bruised lip. The offer did sound tempting. It was better than staying here at least.

“Why are you helping me?”, he asked warily.

“You're not the first person on the run I've picked up over the years.”, he simply answered, “And anyone who is liked by Akino is worth being rescued. Trust me, you're the first one he didn't growl at.”

He opened his book and casually put his free hand behind his head.

“Or you can stay here. Your pick.”

They both fell silent after that. Kakashi busied himself with his book and besides the occasional chuckle Sasori didn't hear anything from him for a long while. But when he eventually stood up to head back to his truck, he followed him.

“Thank you.”, he softly said when they were back on the road.

“Hey, don't sweat it.”, Kakashi answered with a shrug, “We've all been there.”

He increased the radio volume when another song came up. Soft guitar tunes filled out the empty chunks of their conversation, together with Tom Waits telling them to hold on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys!  
> Sorry for the delay. I said I'd try to upload more frequently and ended up doing the exact opposite haha. I was just so busy with school and stuff, I hope you understand.  
> This chapter is a little bit different! And therefore it was harder to create. This was my first attempt at writing Sasori and I hope I did him justice and he's not too ooc. That's one of my constant worries. ^^; This fic is mainly going to be from Hidan's point of view but I'm planning on letting other characters add their two cents every once in a while. But I don't think they're gonna get a whole chapter dedicated to them next time.   
> Anyways! How did you like it? I had so much fun writing this. I just can't figure out how all these people keep ending up in my fic. I never even liked Kakashi but here I am...now I guess I do like him. XD  
> Leave a comment or kudos if you want. No pressure tho!  
> I hope you're all doing well and staying safe. Take good care of yourselves. Thanks for reading, until the next chapter!   
> xoxo


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